Musings

Watch the video of our rewarding Habitat trip to Cambodia by Sarvin Haghighi

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  The most amazing things happen when you have two of your other biggest passions in life combined; traveling to a new country and doing charity for those in need. Last November we travelled to Phnom Penh, Cambodia to build two houses for two needy families.

During our stay, we worked with an amazing group of friends who became our family, people with beautiful souls, great energy and the will to help others. We sweated  together with local workers and the future homeowners under the leadership of an amazing couple for whom we all have tremendous amount of respect ; Neale and Maureen Kemp.

Cambodia has an energy within its soil which is hard to describe. It's incredibly tragic history and what went down during the dark era of Khmer Rouge is upsetting yet it makes you appreciate what you have in life; its amazing to see although they went through such a painful time, yet still the first thing you will see on their faces, is their beautiful smiles and their gratitude towards whats being done.

I decided this would be a more interesting way of sharing our experience with you all. I truly believe every person need to at least do one habitat trip once in their lifetime. That feeling when you hand the key to the new home owners is just indescribable.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1US8vC7st4[/embed]

Watch part of my interview with Behnood Mokri - VOA "Shabahang" by Sarvin Haghighi

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This past January I was interviewed by Behnood Mokri on VOA - Voice of America - Farsi. I have always been a fan of Behnood Mokri's programs. It is hard to believe that I was a guest on one of the shows that we all used to watch back home in Iran with my parents. It was a great honor and I really enjoyed the chat. This is part of the interview which was aired today on VOA's "Shabahang". The complete version will be shared soon through VOA website and on their Facebook page. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcLthoDVWFA&feature=youtu.be[/embed]

Art Dubai 2015; stay tuned for news and images live from Dubai! by Sarvin Haghighi

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Art Dubai is the leading international art fair in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. The ninth edition of the art fair will be taking place in Dubai- UAE on March 18-21. Over the last eight years, Art Dubai has become a cornerstone of the region's booming contemporary art community. Recognized as one of the most globalized meeting points in the art world today, Art Dubai places an emphasis on maintaining its intimate, human, scale while foregrounding quality and diversity.

As mentioned on GQ online on a review on Art Dubai 2014, the view among the collectors, dealers and hangers-on appeared to be that the fair was strong on regional art. Iranian artists have been the premier-league players from the Middle East for a few years now, perhaps made all the more tantalising because they are "other" ; Persian, not Arab; from a large country with more than two thousand years of cultural heritage but now which right now is largely closed to cultural interchange; Middle Eastern and Islamic but also Caucasian and Silk Route. This year's Art Dubai is expected to have more than 80 galleries showcasing their artists.

Stay tuned as photos and updates will be coming up during and post this amazing event along with some exciting news.

Photo:Getty Images for Art Dubai 2014