Fine Artist
Professional, contemporary Artist since 1983.

Graphic & Web Designer
Graphic Artist, Illustrator and animator. Certified Graphic and Web Designer from British Columbia Institute of Technology, Vancouver, Canada. Professional experience in the graphic and web industry with artistic quality. Designing, publishing, maintaining and developing all kinds of corporate, non-profit and personal websites and printing services.

Persian music instructor
Setar teacher: Studied and teaching the Persian music systems, "Dastgahs and Maghams", and  researched the comparison and  link between the aesthetics of Persian classical music and Persian classical painting,"Negargari".

Scientist
Graduated from Poona University with a degree in Physics. Studied the scientific support and analysis of the audio visual elements in Persian arts.

Author, editor and journalist

• Translated and published art books from English to Farsi including  The Language of Painting, The Art of Framing, Cezanne's Drawings, and Delacroix's Journal.

• Co-author of the book "Memories abut Kamal-al-molk", the Persian painter who opened the first  western painting academy in Iran (1990-1996).

• Author of the scholarly thesis, The Aesthetics of Iranian Traditional Painting (Miniature).

• Contributed articles to the national Iranian newspaper, the Shahrvand, in Vancouver, Canada. (1997-2003) 

• Editor and webmaster of the Multifaith Action Society (MFAS) newsletter and website in Vancouver, Canada (1998-2002).4

• Employed in the production department of the Washington Iranians Media Inc. newspaper in Annandale, Virginia (1994).s

• Editor and Webmaster of the Alliance for Democracy in Iran (AFDII) website

• Web designer for the Institute of Religion and Public Policy, Washington, DC.

• Editor, designer, and webmaster of Symourgh.com, Persian News and Views sections.

• Editor, designer and webmaster of Artpars.com, the Persian Arts and Culture sections.

Leadership

• Founder and president of the Iranian Students group in Poona, India (1972-1974).

• Active member of the Confederation of Iranian Students in London, England (1974-1978).

• Founder of  Shabahang Arts Studio (Painting, Graphics and Persian Classical Music) in Tehran, Iran (1983-1996).

• Director of the North Vancouver Community Arts Council  (NVCAC) in North Vancouver, Canada (1998-2002).

• Founder, art director and manager of Artpars Gallery in Vancouver, Canada, sponsored by Caniran Enterprises (1999-2003).

• Founder and president of the Web Association of Canadian Artists (WACA) in Vancouver, BC, an international and multi-cultural artists network.

Bio..

(Extract and translated from Shahrvand-e Vancouver Newspaper on September13,2002)

He began his artistic endeavors after the Islamic revolution. In grade school, he had always been very comfortable and enjoyed the arts and music very much. He went to India and received his degree in Physics and then attempted to receive his masters in London for the same field. He traveled to Europe and became a member of the World Confederation of Iranian Students. However, the onset of the revolution prevented him   to c continue h is s studies as he became actively involved in politics. When returned to Iran, he was very disappointed by the outcome of the revolution and since he did not have permission for a formal job, he turned to art. Studying at Kamal al-Molk, the famous arts institution in Iran, He studied under Hossein Sheykh, who had been one of the original students of Kamal al-Molk. Other teachers included Bangeez, Marzaie, Broumand, Amamehpich, Aghdashloo and Ruyin Pakbaz. He once again became familiarized with drawing and painting. In 1983, he established Shabahang Art Atelier, a studio near the University of Tehran. It later became a center for artists and musicians to gather and collaborate. Saeed Broumand Group and Jacob Amameh Peech Group and for sometime Ruyin Pakbaz, in visual arts, Hameed Motebassem, Hemmati, and Hammidi in music,  Ali Dehbashee and Asghar Abdolahi in literature were all involved in his studio at some point. He tried to learn and participate in all of the fields and took advantage of the knowledge of these active artists  and in intellectuals. In 1985, he published Memories of Kamal al-Molk, and an Artists' Calendar with the help of  Ali Dehbashee. Later on, he translated and  published "The Language of Painting", and "The Art of Framing" and translated other books that were never published. At the studio, He played and taught Setar, but most importantly he tried to learn as much as he could from respected artists such as Ruyin Pakbaz who taught classes later at his studio called Tandis. During this time of three to four years, he learned much about the history of art, the fundamentals of visual arts, and the experienced many different styles. He held several individual and group exhibitions in Tehran, the last exhibition was the second bi-annual exhibition organized by the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Arts. After eighteen years of living in Iran after the revolution, eight years of which he was not permitted to leave Iran, he turned to consider immigration with his family, in the hopes of allowing his two daughters to live in a country with more opportunities for them.
 

 (Arts Alive Magazine, North Vancouver, Canada)
"Originally from Iran, Darab Shabahang has enjoyed long and varied careers as both a scientist and as an artist. He completed his Bachelor of Science degree in physics from Poona University, India, and spent several years in England. He returned to Iran in the 1970's during the country’s revolution but was unable to continue his work in physics.....  Shabahang turned to art, his childhood hobby. The 1980's and early 1990's were a very productive time for Shabahang: he worked as a music teacher, taught art classes, and published art books through his own atelier,  Shabahang Art Studio. He also began to develop his career as a painter. His teaching career allowed him to explore a diverse range of styles: impressionism, expressionism, realism, cubism, and classical work. He found himself drawn  to expressionist work, and, as his skill developed, began to participate in individual and group exhibitions throughout Iran. His greatest love, however, was his research on traditional Iranian art. He spearheaded a group of academics and artists seeking ways to incorporate traditional Iranian styles and colors into modern work. Almost 20 years after the revolution in Iran, Shabahang grew tired of the social and political oppression in his homeland. He and his family moved to Canada in May 1996..."

 (About Artpars and WACA, North Vancouver, Canada)
Before the conception of ArtPars, I studied at BCIT and Capilano College in the fields of animation, graphic design, and web design. These studies helped me better monitor WACA through the web. With the help and cooperation of many friends and colleagues in Vancouver, the US, Iran, and Europe, I was able to take WACA to where I wanted it to be. In 2000, in the midst of establishing WACA, I became involved in a gallery by the name of Art by the Sea, including the works of other artists in Vancouver. By the end of the year, the gallery seemed to be quickly on its way to closing, and I saw an opportunity to finally establish a gallery to house the Artpars and WACA community. I hoped to open a gallery that would separate itself from the snobbish reputation that many artists and galleries had received and allow for it to be a place where every individual could enjoy art. I wanted to create a network of artists, educating artists as well as art lovers, and promoting multi-culturalism in the art world. Through the years, our guestbook became filled by artists and non artists, showing the great response to such a community. Everyone from students to seniors seemed to find something they enjoyed, and many expressed to me how they felt like their artistic ambitions were more within reach. We have monthly meetings at Artpars for WACA and perhaps through the cooperation of the two organizations, we can continue to make art a solid and stable facet of our society.