M.Rafiei Portfolio

Transcript

1. Creative Portfolio Melika Rafiei — 2026 preencoded.png
2. Introduction Professional Profile Melika Rafiei is a curator, cultural strategist, and founder of Atelier Curate, a UK-registered cultural strategy practice working at the intersection of culture, business, and the built environment. Through curatorial thinking, she helps organisations translate cultural ambition into strategic frameworks, experience-led programmes, and spatial interventions that strengthen institutional identity, public engagement, and long-term organisational value. Her practice spans cultural strategy, curatorial projects, exhibition design, public programming, and experience design, enabling her to transform ideas into coherent cultural ecosystems rather than standalone events or exhibitions. By integrating creative vision with strategic planning and operational thinking, she develops initiatives that connect artistic production with audience development, placemaking, commercial performance, and measurable impact. Working across the cultural, creative, hospitality, and built environment sectors, She collaborates with cultural institutions, developers, brands, and public organisations to position culture as a catalyst for organisational innovation and sustainable growth. Her work explores how curatorial strategy can shape places, strengthen communities, enhance customer experience, and create lasting cultural, social, and economic value. Her long-term vision is to establish curatorial thinking as a strategic discipline beyond the arts - demonstrating its role in shaping institutions, cities, and experience-led businesses where culture is recognised not as a peripheral programme, but as essential infrastructure for long-term resilience, relevance, and value creation. preencoded.png
3. Education Master's Degree in Curating Art & Public Programmes London South Bank University, United Kingdom • • • Public engagement, curatorial direction, digital art integration, and audience building Developed curatorial frameworks and programme concepts bridging art, audiences, and institutional objectives Role: Course Representative, demonstrating leadership and contribution to cohort experience Bachelor's Degree in Architecture Islamic Azad University, Iran • • • Spatial design, conceptual modelling, and 3D visualisation Applied architectural design to shape public and exhibition spaces, fostering meaningful audience interaction Role: Honours Society, organising guest lectures, conferences and interdisciplinary collaborations Associate Degree in Architectural Drawing Isfahan Technical and Vocational University, Iran • Foundation in technical drawing, visual communication, and documentation Certifications and Awards Art & Heritage Management, University of Bocconi, Italy preencoded.png
4. Project Portfolio 1. Nicole Eisenman: What Happened? Whitechapel Gallery, London, United Kingdom, 2023–2024 Curated by Mark Godfrey and Monika BayerWermuth in collaboration with Museum Brandhorst, Munich 2. It All Started with a Thread Whitechapel Gallery, London, United Kingdom, 2023 Curated by Melika Rafiei, Caroline Ip, Dearbhla Hanney, Erin Saunders, Eva Williams, Jane Ross, Nastia Svarevska, Nicola Cosford, Rebecca Russell and Yulia.i Scope of Work: Working alongside the Exhibitions department and external curatorial team on Scope of Work: Research contribution to thematic exhibition design and exhibition layout. The first major UK retrospective of the American artist, surveying more than three decades of her practice. Featuring over 100 works spanning painting, sculpture, monoprint, animation, and drawing, the exhibition mapped the evolution of Eisenman's visual language through a chronological framework, foregrounding themes of gender and identity, civic and political life, protest culture, and shifting social relationships in the digital age. Press: The Guardian, Ocula, Apollo Magazine, Hauser & Wirth, FAD Magazine, Whitechapel Gallery. and curatorial development, installation coordination and spatial execution, exhibition development support through 3D modelling and spatial planning optimisation. A group exhibition developed by the 2022–23 MA cohort of LSBU exploring textile as material language and socio-political framework, examining identity, labour, memory, and cultural narratives through contemporary textile-based practices. The exhibition embedded accessibility as a core curatorial methodology through tactile interfaces, Braille interpretation texts, and a curated audio programme, broadening audience reach and aligning exhibition design with inclusive cultural policy standards. Press: Thomas-Ferdinand.com, MutualArt, Artshouse Magazine, Are.na, and an official SoundCloud audio guide. 3. Art Icon Award, Phillips Auction Whitechapel Gallery, London, United Kingdom, 2023 Scope of Work: Supported CRM-driven donor engagement, VIP hospitality, and event delivery for the Art Icon Award and Phillips charity auction honouring Jenny Holzer, contributing to stakeholder engagement and the successful execution of one of the Gallery's principal fundraising events. The Art Icon Award is Whitechapel Gallery's flagship annual fundraising gala and Phillips auction, celebrating internationally acclaimed artists while raising vital funds for the Gallery's exhibitions, learning initiatives, and public programmes. Proceeds support year-round access to contemporary art and creative education for children, young people, and local communities across London's East End, ensuring culture remains accessible to audiences who have historically been underrepresented in the arts. Press: The Guardian, ArtReview, Forbes, Vault Magazine, Martin Cid Magazine, Town & Country, Eyes on Talents. preencoded.png
5. 4. Max Mara Art Prize for Women — Awarded Artist: Dominique White Whitechapel Gallery in partnership with Collezione Maramotti, London, United Kingdom, 2023 Scope of Work: Supported public-facing engagement around the Max Mara Art Prize for Women, a major commissioning prize for emerging female artists in the UK, engaging with exhibition mediation and audience interaction within institutional programming. Press: The Guardian, Ocula, FAD Magazine, Artribune, Espoarte, 2LUXURY2. 5. Routes and Roots — Group Exhibition E1 Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran, 2024 Curated by Melika Rafiei Scope of Work: Concept development, curatorial research, thematic framework, artist selection and collaboration, work commissioning, exhibition narrative structuring, spatial planning and display strategy, curatorial writing, installation supervision, public engagement strategy. Examined migration and exile as structural and experiential conditions informing contemporary identity formation, bringing together works by Nastaran Safaei, Hossein Azadi, Behdad Lahooti, and Narges Mohammadian. The exhibition positioned migration as an ongoing process rather than a singular narrative, addressing the tensions between continuity and rupture that shape diasporic experience. 6. Vlassis Caniaris Exhibition: Selected Works 1960s–1980s Hellenic Centre, London, United Kingdom, 2024 — Curatorial Tour Scope of Work: Conducted a guided curatorial walkthrough articulating the conceptual framework of the artist's first ever UK exhibition, situating the works within their socio-historical context and engaging audiences in critical dialogue around material, narrative, and authorship. Press: New Exhibitions, All About Shipping, Galerie Peter Kilchmann, The Hellenic Centre. Press: Galleryinfo.ir, Peyvast, official press release, printed exhibition catalogue. preencoded.png
6. 7. Artweeks Istanbul (IX Edition) The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Teşvikiye, Şişli, Istanbul, Türkiye, 2024 — Curatorial Advisor Scope of Work: Shaping the conceptual direction 8. Curating and the Art Market Conference — Sotheby's Institute of Art Sotheby's Institute, London, United Kingdom, 2025 — Delegate of sections, exhibitions, and projects; balancing commercial visibility with curatorial integrity; developing the intellectual framework behind talks, panels, and public programmes; advising on spatial flow and visitor experience across venues. Scope of Work: Participated in sessions, contributing to breakout discussions, Press: Euronews Türkiye, Anadolu Agency, Dünya A research-driven international conference examining the entanglement between curatorial practice and art market systems, structured through keynote lectures, panel discussions, and open forums on private institutions, the economics of exhibition-making, and the boundaries between academic research and commercial frameworks. Referenced in the 2025 Research Report by Sotheby's Institute of Art. Press: TIAMSA, ArtHist.net, Sotheby's Institute. Gazetesi, Türkiye Today, Sanatatak, ArtDog Istanbul, Azure Magazine. roundtables, and collaborative exchanges around contemporary curatorial practice and art market dynamics. 9. Planethon 365 Auction — Sacred Land Sotheby's in partnership with Saatchi Gallery, London, United Kingdom, 2024 Curated by Daniella Celine Williams and Giulietta Bateman Scope of Work: Execution of the Planethon 365 Auction at Saatchi Gallery, supporting exhibition coordination and live auction operations for a sustainability-driven fundraising initiative. Sacred Land explored the cultural, spiritual, and political meanings of land as a site of memory, identity, belief, and contestation. The Planethon 365 Auction, a sustainability-focused initiative, culminated in a charity auction led by Lord Harry Dalmeny of Sotheby's, raising £250,000. Press: The Wick Culture, Artsy, ArtRabbit, Saatchi Gallery, Sotheby's. preencoded.png
7. 10. 1884: Pictures for People University of Michigan, Michigan, United States, 2024–2025 – Ongoing Project Director: Professor Lucy Hartley 11. Community Engagement & Cultural Programmes Lead The Well House (Greystar / Invesco), Sutton, United Kingdom, 2025 12. Silk Road Cultural Pop-up House Temporary Cultural House | Inaugural Edition, Tehran, Iran, 2026 - Ongoing Scope of Work: Reconstruction of a 3D model of an 1884 exhibition held in East London, informed by Scope of Work: Designed and implemented CRMinformed arts and cultural engagement initiatives Scope of Work: Leading the project from concept to creative direction, developing the curatorial archival research into the period's key design practices. Developing a detailed digital environment using historical mapping data and object references, bespoke assets, spatial planning, and a coherent display strategy to translate the exhibition into an immersive, historically grounded format. Ongoing project to be published as a virtual exhibition. for a luxury residential community, using data and behavioral insights to enhance community participation, strengthen resident relationships, and support retention and asset performance. Developed and led culturally driven programmes and a continuous calendar of luxury lifestyle programming, positioning The Well House as a resort-style residential destination offering hospitality-grade cultural experiences at scale — functioning as strategic engagement infrastructure that contributed to increased resident satisfaction, stronger community cohesion, and improved retention, renewal rates, and overall asset performance. vision, spatial narrative, and visitor experience. Conducted interdisciplinary research into material culture, Silk Road histories, fermentation, textiles, and craft traditions to establish the project's conceptual framework. Silk Road Cultural House is a temporary cultural house and immersive spatial experience that reimagines the Silk Road as a living network of material exchange rather than a historical trade route. Bringing together contemporary art, textile installations, handcrafted objects, a material research laboratory, communal dining, and public programming, the project explores how silk, tea, olive oil, ceramics, and craft traditions carry memories of migration, adaptation, and cultural transformation. preencoded.png
8. Selected Endorsements Professor Lucy Hartley University of Michigan Confirms Melika Rafiei undertook work reconstructing and reimagining the Whitechapel Fine Art Loan Exhibition of 1884 as a digital model, funded by grant, October 2024–March 2025. Describes her as an excellent, reliable, responsive team member, adaptable to work as and when needed, and recommends her without hesitation. Cameron Foote Curator, Whitechapel Gallery Endorses Melika Rafiei for a role in exhibition design. She completed the MA Curating Art and Public Programmes at Whitechapel Gallery and London South Bank University, including a substantial placement within Whitechapel's curatorial department. Developed a 3D model in preparation for the Nicole Eisenman retrospective, using her own architectural measurements, images, and highly researched digital floorplan and walkthrough animation, producing work of a significantly higher professional standard than previous exhibitions. Played a significant role in decision-making around placement of artworks and other design elements, contributing to significant improvements in visitor experience; the exhibition was very well attended with strong press reviews. Describes her as meticulous, diligent, invaluable, positive, flexible, and collaborative. preencoded.png
9. 2026. All Rights Reserved. preencoded.png