Mariam Tafsiri

Biography

Mariam Tafsiri is a British-Iranian illustrator and visual artist based in London. Her practice is deeply informed by her heritage, drawing on the visual language of Qajar-era Persian painting, Persian miniatures, and traditional Islamic pattern and ornamentation. Working primarily in richly detailed, densely layered digital illustration, she reinterprets historical motifs, symbols, and figures through a contemporary lens, often exploring themes of identity, femininity, and cultural memory. Tafsiri has built a distinctive visual style characterized by intricate linework, vivid color palettes, and a decorative sensibility rooted in miniature painting traditions. Her illustrations frequently feature women rendered with ornate detail, surrounded by botanical and geometric motifs that echo the borders and margins found in classical Persian manuscripts. Her work has been exhibited internationally, including presentations with Girlsclub Asia, a platform supporting women and non-binary artists, and as part of group exhibitions such as 'Rise, Habibi' at Crypt Gallery, which centered artists from the Middle East and North Africa and its diaspora. She has also shown work in the context of Designers of Colour and in collaboration with fashion label MUNTHE. Beyond exhibitions, Tafsiri has worked as a commercial and editorial illustrator, contributing artwork for published works including cover illustrations for W. W. Norton & Company. Her practice bridges fine art and design, and she continues to develop a body of work that reclaims and reimagines Persian visual heritage for contemporary audiences. Tafsiri shares her work primarily through Instagram, where she has cultivated a following drawn to her ornate, culturally rooted illustration style.