Arash Yaghmaian

Arash Yaghmaian is an Iranian-American documentary photographer focusing primarily on socio-political and cultural issues. He was trained as a visual artist at a young age, working in advertising and animation at a family owned company in Iran. In his mid-twenties, he moved to New York City where he now lives and works.  While living in New York, he worked as a graphic designer and began taking photos.  For several years he continued to experiment in the visual arts until finally deciding to commit to photography in 2014. In 2017, his series, 'Land Not for Sale' gained global recognition and won the Hipa International Grand Prize award. The photographs were taken in a landfill in Guwahati, India depicting a small community, barefoot, sorting through heavy piles of garbage, collecting recyclables for less than $2 a day. He remains committed to documenting realities of the human condition, simultaneously creating a lyrical visual aesthetic that is thought-provoking and emotionally compelling.