Elly Kalantari

Elly Kalantari is an intermedia artist whose practice bridges photography, moving image, sculpture, and immersive installation. With over a decade of experience in fine art she crafts works that delve into transformation, identity, and the intricate interplay between the familiar and the unknown. Her art often challenges perceptions of cultural codes, particularly surrounding the female body, and invites viewers into surreal, dreamlike spaces informed by psychoanalysis and the subconscious.

Born with a spirit of exploration, Elly moved from Iran to Turkey and now lives in states.She studied photography at Tehran art university and got her masters in Intermedia and Digital art at University of Maryland, Baltimore county in 2024. To study and practice art, a journey that sparked her lifelong embrace of fluidity and unlearning cultural patterns. Her process mirrors her personal philosophy, welcoming failure and discovery as integral steps in creating work that resonates with the complexities of human experience. 

Elly's projects often utilize unconventional materials, such as custom rice paper integrated into digital photographs, to heighten tactile and visual contrasts. Inspired by her travels, she draws on the discomfort of unfamiliarity to create sculptures and installations that examine identity, gender, and otherness in a globalized, multiethnic era. Through her art, Elly Kalantari invites us to explore the spaces between certainty and transformation, finding beauty in the unexpected.