Partou Zia (پرتو ضیاء) was a Persian painter who moved to the United Kingdom as a political refugee. She was a prominent figure in feminism, a writer and also a philosopher. Her paintings focused on her spiritual journey towards self-discovery and incorporated mythical elements of her lost culture, as well as her new-found life in Cornwall.
It is not form I want, but the essence of a memory; the sound of a feeling; the taste of a loss... I can paint the pictures of my dreams and talk to the stars
Born in Tehran, Persia (modern-day Iran), Partou Zia moved to London in 1970 as a political refugee, due to being the daughter of a Communist activist in Tehran. In 1970, there were several shifts in Iranian politics, which concluded with the Iranian Revolution in 1979.
She received her formal introduction to art through its history at the University of Warwick, followed by an Honours Degree in Fine Art from the Slade School of Fine Art (1986-91) and a PhD from the Falmouth Art College (2001).
Zia was the first to be awarded an opportunity to be Artist in Residence at Porthmeor Studios, as well as the first female artist to occupy the space. During her residency from 2003 to 2004, Zia was required to select an artist from the Tate collection to inspire the outcome of her work; she selected William Blake as her inspiration, due to resonating with his themes of dislocation and sense of a different reality, particularly in relation to the isolation of being an Asian female artist in the south-west of the UK. The choice for her residency was Blake's poem 'The Four Zoas', fittingly rich in symbolism and classical references.
Zia reached an artistic apex during her residency, and her works were displayed at the Tate St Ives accompanied by a catalogue titled 'Entering the Visionary Zone', where she displayed a journey of self-discovery and developed her sense of individuality; through these vibrant canvases, Zia draws the viewer into her dream-like memories. Zia's older work centred around the myths and memories of her childhood in Iran, where displacement was a potent and recurring theme; these paintings depicting her childhood are dreamlike and reimagined, to give her childhood self a sense of freedom away from her political upbringing. These works gradually grew to be oriented around a quiet contentedness in Cornwall, as Zia became more familiar with her new home. However, Zia was never truly able to separate herself from her dual citizenship and described herself as feeling like she was neither here nor there. The tone of her work shifted dramatically following her cancer diagnosis; work which was previously more symbolic and imaginative began to show a more literal depiction of her journey at the time.
Prominent themes within Zia's work are her incorporation of motifs and symbols within domestic spaces - such as lovers, sleepers, dreamers and readers, often placed within evocative interiors and vibrant landscapes; her self-portrait is a recurring figure, as well as a more abstract display of self where she can be seen featured multiple times in one piece; and yellow features frequently within her work, which for Zia connotes spirituality and is one of many colours that is used symbolically.
From 1993 until her untimely death from cancer in 2008, Zia lived and worked in Cornwall alongside her husband, Richard Cook; they lived together in a small cottage in Newlyn, which they had transformed into an eclectic studio filled with books and oil paintings. Despite being given just two years left to live when she received her diagnosis, Zia remained dedicated to her work and continued to paint, eventually living for double the length of her original prognosis; instead of accepting the inevitable, she worked to make the most of the time she had left.
For her obituary in The Guardian (2008), Professor Penny Florence, who supervised Zia's studies at Falmouth, wrote the following about her friend:
At her death, Partou was preparing for publication several plays, stories and reflections, all of which are formally innovative and written in a clear and original voice. They convey a strong sense of her lightness and charm, and they enrich the understanding of her use of mythological allusion in painting.
This work is on display at Tate St Ives and forms part of their section on 'Modern Spirituality', referencing Zia's own journey towards spiritual self-discovery, as well as her connection with Persian culture and mythology more generally.
