Un-acquired Taste by Noah Kashiani

Bio
Noah Kashiani (b.1992 Cleveland, Ohio) lives and works in Chicago Illinois after receiving his MFA from Northern Illinois University (2019). Kashiani's work pulls on the heart strings of our weakest form. Glamorizing the transient nature of human consumption, exploiting our vulnerability to the American dream and really deciding what objects mean to us as humans. Kashiani has exhibited at Studio Break Gallery (West Chicago), Marfa Open (Marfa, Texas), Roy G Biv (Columbus, Ohio), 934 Gallery (Columbus, Ohio), Casa Lu (Mexico City), Annette and Jerry Johns Gallery (DeKalb, IL), California Institute of the Arts (Santa Clarita, California), University of Wisconsin (Kenosha, Wisconsin), Cleve Carney Museum of Art (Glen Ellyn, Illinois), Parlour and Ramp (Chicago, IL), Purple Window Gallery (Chicago), Heaven Gallery (Chicago), among galleries and cultural institutions. Recent exhibitions include Dubya Em Deez, at Cleaner Gallery (Chicago, IL) and Gimme More at Missouri State University (Springfield, MO).

Statement
The air is imbued with the scent of minty kiwi-strawberry, a refreshing aroma that fills my senses.

My heart thunders in my chest, drowning out the existence I once prioritized.

The cheers of my contemporaries pushing me on.

With every turn, every straightaway, I keep the accelerator to the floor, determined to prove my worth.

The competition was fierce, the stakes high.

While finishing my final sip of sugar free red bull and refueling with my last bite of now unfrozen corndogs I see my reflection embedded within the glossy red ketchup.

I whisper to myself.

"I'm a star. I'm a star, I'm a star, I'm a star. I'm a big, bright, shining star."