Icy and Sot are the very definition of ballsy: after being arrested multiple times in their home country of Iran for their artwork, they ended up being banned from the nation, seeking asylum in the United States. For the past five years, they have been assimilating and shifting their message based on the values of each new landscape. After starting with spray paint and stencils, their work has evolved to large scale sculptures and installations involving everyday objects like chainlink fences, fans and gasoline cans as statements for important and often swept-under-the-rug issues like race relations and climate change.

It is for their courage and drive to tackle the ugly components of our collective reality that we pledge nothing but support to them in all future endeavors. As they continue to push the envelope and break down boundaries, we hope it is in ways that do nothing but fully infiltrate (and hopefully influence) the public sphere.

related links: artist website,

words by carter