Niloufar Talebi visits to share from her new hybrid and poetic memoir, Self-Portrait In Bloom, the literary accompaniment to her recent opera, both inspired by the great Iranian poet Ahmad Shamlou. This talented author will consider what it means to be an outsider, insider, woman in the #Metoo era, an artist from a sanctioned country, and a spectator of squashed uprisings in Iran—all while still cherishing a sense of humor.

Memoirist Firoozeh Dumas calls Self-Portrait In Bloom “A brutally honest memoir of a life built by words, destroyed by words, rebuilt by words.” Tamim Ansary says that the writing is “not just poignant, it's wrenching.” Released in the 40th anniversary year of the Iranian revolution, this book is part-memoir, part-biography, and a part-history of literature in Iran that delves deep into culture and personal history. Talebi pays powerful homage to Tehran, the city of her childhood. In fragments of prose, poetry, and photographs, her lyrical exploration reimagines the memoir form.

How do monumental changes in culture and place impact the creation of art and self? In an interview with Firoozeh Dumas, Talebi translates these rich questions and histories into an even richer artistic present.

Don’t miss this utterly unique book in its full bloom, at Kepler’s on February 10th.

If you are a guest attending this event and require disability accommodations, please contact events@keplers.org at your earliest possible convenience, with at least two weeks’ notice for CART or ASL translation services. Please include the name and ticket type through which your seats were reserved, the number of guests attending, and complete information about the accommodations needed, along with a contact number at which you can be reached.

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Photo of Niloufar Talebi by Devlin Shand Photography.