We had the good fortune of connecting with Soheyla Rashidyan and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Soheyla, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?

The world begins with our childhood. In fact, the world stays the same as in childhood. The real world where colors, laughter, and love have their true meaning … We do not see obstacles in childhood, everything is level and easy, and our imagination is real. Everything is what it should be; but gradually we learn to change, and the meaning of everything changes. We get out of the real world; we lose courage and experience fear and insecurity.

We learn to be educated.

We learn to be afraid of heights, to be careful when we run, and to be cautious of our joys. And to not believe everything…

Actually, the real world is still the same as when we were kids., but little by little we become unreal and more artificial…
Politics, money, and selfishness find their meaning. Our little hands grow up, and our feet take bigger steps to change our world into adults. In fact, we forget that we were a kid and loved all the colors and enjoyed all the games.
Height and depth did not prevent us from jumping. Selfishness did not prevent us from paying attention to those around us. We caressed the animals and loved them, and we were excited about moving outdoors. Everything was wide and big without a fence.
Then, we are the ones who grew up, and our hands and legs grew taller…
To leave real-life faster…

To reach balance in life, we should have deep experience. This comes gradually with the passage of time and is the connection of our instinct and our spiritual growth. You should take the opportunity to use honest introspection, self-expression, and other tools to deepen our connection with our spirit and give freedom to your inner child to help us stretch our imagination as far as it will go.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am not doing art because it is art. I do art because it is my life. To find myself, what is inside me, what kind of gift I have, knowing god, knowing humans…knowing how many opportunities are inside me, what kind of seeds god planted inside me to find and share with other people.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Art museums, art galleries, and coffee shops – anywhere that I can sit and see art and drink a cup of coffee. I like La Madeleine too…with French breakfast.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
When I arrived in the United States, the first job I was offered was as a home nurse and caregiver, which was arranged through the Refugee Agency.

It was a very low-paying job, and it was very difficult for me because I was not familiar with English or the American culture.

The person who hired me was a man named Mike Korman, and I became his mother’s nurse. This kind son and his beautiful mother, Frances, gave me the opportunity to gain self-confidence over the time I worked with them. I learned English very quickly interacting with Frances, so after she died I decided to go to college to continue my education; this would not have been possible without Mike’s help. After that, he has the one who has always with me in all the successes of my life in America.

Maybe he was a friend that God sent me

Website: https://mocva.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soheyla.art/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/soheyla-rashidyan-68a64865/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/contemporarychildartmuseum.org/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxczxTUSWmI

Image Credits
Nick Gharivand Mike Korman Julia Rashidiyan

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