Apolis - Arash Fayez

Arash Fayez’s Apolis serves as a visual autobiography documenting the artist’s life from 2014 to 2018, a period marked by uncertainty and displacement. Spanning 312 pages, the book includes Fayez’s complete U.S. immigration file, detailing his arrest and eventual voluntary departure. These official documents are layered with cell phone photos capturing everyday moments, creating a powerful collage that conceals sensitive information while revealing the emotional texture of those years.

This juxtaposition of personal images and formal records produces a multi-dimensional narrative, contrasting the perspectives of the powerful and the powerless. The project was inspired by a conversation with an immigration lawyer who succinctly described Fayez’s legal situation: “Your status is not illegal, but it’s also not legal.”

Born in Tehran, Fayez is an artist focused on exploring spaces of in-betweenness. After studying art at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco, he now resides in Barcelona, where he continues to interrogate themes of identity and transience through diverse visual media.