# Shirin Neshat artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/shirin-neshat/
Profile generated: 2026-05-07T18:04:29.509Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Nationality: Iranian, American
- Movements: Contemporary art
- Common media: Photography, Video installation, Film

## About Shirin Neshat

Shirin Neshat (born 1957, Iran) is an Iranian-American photographer, video artist, and filmmaker whose work explores the tensions between Islamic and Western cultures, femininity and masculinity, and the boundaries between public and private life. She emigrated to the United States in 1974 and has lived and worked in New York City since 1979. Neshat is best known for her stark black-and-white photographic series and immersive dual-screen video installations that examine identity, exile, and gender in Iranian society. Her work has been exhibited at major institutions worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Tate in London, and Documenta 11 in Kassel. She also directs feature-length films that extend her exploration of Iranian cultural and political themes into narrative cinema. Collectors encounter her work across photography editions, video installations, and film-related media.

## Common works and media

Collectors most frequently encounter Neshat's gelatin silver and chromogenic photographic prints from series such as Women of Allah, often featuring calligraphy-overlaid portraits. Her dual- and multi-channel video installations — including Turbulent, Rapture, and Fervor — circulate as limited-edition works with dedicated playback equipment. Printed multiples, artist books, film posters, and photographic portfolios also appear at auction. Less commonly, early paintings and works on paper from her pre-1990s period may surface.

## Market and appraisal context

Shirin Neshat's work appears regularly at international auction, with over 570 recorded lots across photographs, prints, and video-based editions. Key factors affecting appraisal include the specific medium and format, edition size and number, provenance and gallery origin, exhibition history, and whether the work belongs to a recognized series such as Women of Allah or her major video installation trilogy. Institutional holdings at MoMA, Tate, and other major museums support continued collector interest. Condition assessment for video works should include both media integrity and any associated display equipment.

## Appraisily data basis

This Appraisily artist page combines verified identity research from library authority files and major museum records with auction-house context, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. Institutional and authority sources include MoMA, Tate, Getty ULAN, the Library of Congress, VIAF, RKD, and Wikidata.

## Sources

- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q262413
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shirin_Neshat
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500114658
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/54983055/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n98049213
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/8349
- Tate: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/shirin-neshat-5459
- RKD: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/203084