It is a spot beyond imagination

Delighted to the heart, where roses bloom

And sparkling fountains murmur- where the earth

Is rich with many-coloured flowers; and musk

Floats on the gentle breezes, hyacinths

And lilies add their perfume, golden fruits

Weigh down the branches of the lofty trees.

                                    “The Allegorical Garden”

The poetry of Ferdowsi, the Persian poet (935-1020 A.D) and sentiments evoked by his literary tradition have inspired Fatima Garzan (holds BFA from University of Waterloo) to create this body of work. To Persians, the garden represents an image of ‘pardis’ – the Persian word for paradise and a place of great happiness and heavenly  beauty.  The four gardens within pardis are the Garden of the Soul, the Garden of the Heart, the Garden of the Spirit, and the Garden of the Essence. The leaf motif in Fatima’s work is a recurring element and is a symbol of unity and meditative approach to her paintings and prints through the process of reductive woodcut. Each work is unique and based on a single fixed image; super-imposed, cropped, or solitaire.