Salma Arastu
Education
1988 Northampton Community College, Bethlehem, PA Associate Degree in Advertising Design
1974 Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda, India MFA
1972 Jawaharlal University, Hyderabad, India BFA
Awards
2020 East Bay Community Foundation’s “Fund for Artists”, Oakland, CA
2016 City of Berkeley Individual artist grant, Berkeley, CA
2015 City of Berkeley Individual artist grant, Berkeley, CA
2014 City of Berkeley Individual artist grant, Berkeley, CA
2014 East Bay Community Foundation’s “Fund for Artists”, Oakland, CA
2012 East Bay Community Foundation’s “Fund for Artists”, Oakland, CA
2005 Honorable Mention, Lehigh Art Alliance Show, Bethlehem, PA
2004 First Place, Northeastern Regional Art Show, Marywood University, Scranton, PA
2004 First Place, Lehigh Art Alliance Annual Show, Bethlehem, PA
2001 Honorable Mention, Berks Art Alliance Show, Reading Art Museum, Reading, PA
2001 Honorable Mention, Harrisburg Art Museum, Harrisburg, PA
2000 Quakertown National Bank Award, Lehigh Art Alliance Show, Bethlehem, PA
1995 Second Prize in Works on Paper, Soho, New York, NY
1995 Second Place in Painting, West Park Civic Association, Allentown, PA
1992 Best Painting Award, Easton Hospital’s Annual Show, Easton, PA
1988 Best Painting Award, Northampton Community College, Bethlehem, PA
1980 First Place Award in Painting, AP Lalit Kala Academy, India
1979 First Place Award in Painting, Bhartiya Kala Parishad, India
1974 First Place Award in Etching, Gujarat Lalit Kala Academy, India
1973 Scholarship Award to study master’s Program at MS University, India
Solo Exhibitions
2023 We Are All One, Lindsay Dirkx Brown Gallery, San Ramon, CA
2021 Abrams Claghorn Gallery, Our Earth: Embracing All Communities, Albany, CA
2021 Think Round Fine Art, Meditations on Rumi, San Francisco, CA
2020 Oakland Asian Cultural Center, Memory Vignettes, Oakland, CA
2019 Graduate Theological Institute Library Gallery, Seeking Oneness, Berkeley, CA
2018 Arts at CIIS, Myth & Mystery, San Francisco, CA
2018 Musical Bridges Gallery, Celebrating the Art Of Calligraphy, San Antonio, TX
2017 ArtReach, First Congregational Church, Portland, OR
2016 Peninsula Art Museum, Burlingame, CA
2015 Multicultural Center, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA
2015 Museum of Contemporary Religious Art. St. Louis University, St. Louis, MO
2015 Levantine Cultural Center, Los Angeles, CA
2014 Robert Graves Gallery, Wenatchee Valley College, Wenatchee, WA
2014 Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara, CA
2013 Art @ the Y, University of Illinois, Champaign, IL
2013 Expressions Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2012 Dominican University Gallery, San Rafael, CA
2012 King Gallery, Unitarian Universalist at San Francisco, CA
2011 A temporary exhibition, Art in Embassies, US Department of State, US Embassy Rangoon, Burma
2011 Commonwealth Club, San Francisco, CA
2009 California Institute of Integral Studies Art Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2009 Kalart Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2008 Community Gallery, Alta Bates, Berkeley, CA
2008 Hot Mango Pickle Gallery, Palo Alto, CA
2007 Monsoon Galleries, Bethlehem, PA
2007 Chandler Fine Art Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2006 ArtJaz Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2005 The Hope Horn Gallery, Scranton University, Scranton, PA
2005 Monsoon Galleries, Bethlehem, PA
2005 Fayberger Gallery, Penn State University, Reading, PA
2005 Radford University Art Museum, Radford University, Radford, VA
2004 The Art Alliance, Cornwell, NY
2004 Gelabert Studios Gallery, New York, NY
2003 ArtJaz Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2003 Black Cultural Center, Lafayette College, Easton, PA
2002 Barnes & Noble, Broadway, New York, NY
2002 Open Space Gallery, Allentown, PA
2000 ArtJaz Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2000 An invitational exhibition of paintings/six-week residency program in Schwabisch Gmund, Germany
1999 Reading Art Museum, Reading, PA
1998 Art Gallery De Art Magic, Easton, PA
1998 Art Heritage, New Delhi, India
1998 “A Gallery,” New York, NY
1997 Hub Gallery, Moravian College, Bethlehem, PA
1997 The Gallery, Northampton Community College, Bethlehem, PA
1993 Design Accent, Allentown, PA
1992 Cedar Crest College, Allentown, PA
1992 Powers Art Gallery, East Stroudsburg University, East Stroudsburg, PA
1991 Fine Arts Commission, Rotunda Gallery, Bethlehem, PA
1989 East Penn Emerging Artists’ Exhibition, John’s United Church of Christ, Kutztown, PA
1989 Springer Gallery, Allentown, PA
1989 DuBois Gallery & Display Cases, Maginnes Hall, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA
1986 Boushari Gallery, Kuwait City, Kuwait
1984 British Council Gallery, Kuwait City, Kuwait
1981Kala Bhavan Gallery, Hyderabad, India
1979 Shridharani Gallery, New Delhi, India
1978 Azad Gallery, Tehran, Iran
1977 Art Gallery, Hotel Intercontinental, Tehran, Iran
1976 Kala Bhavan Gallery, Hyderabad, India
1975 Kala Bhavan Gallery, Hyderabad, India
1973 Academy of Fine Arts Gallery, Calcutta, India
Selected Group Exhibitions
2023 The Natural Other, Mercury 20, Oakland, CA
2023 Bay Area figurative from Abstraction, Uncle Credit Union gallery, Livermore, CA
2023 Women of Northern California: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow, John Natsoulas Gallery, Davis, CA
2023 Stories from My Childhood: NIU Art Museum, Northern Illinois University DeKalb, IL
2022 The Language of Nature: Luna Gallery, San Juan Bautista, CA
2022 Essential Truths: bay Area Artists in Color, Sanchez Art center, Pacifica, CA
2022 Eco-artwork: 11 Artists from 8 Countries, Various Small Fires, Los Angeles, CA
2022 THE WILD SIDE: California Women Celebrate the Untamed, Arc Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2021 Four Squared at Arc Studios and Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2021 Deadlocked and Loaded at ArtRage Gallery, Syracuse, NY
2021 Women Eco Artists Dialogue group show, Traces at Danville Village Art Gallery, CA
2020 The Writing is on the Wall at K Gallery, Rhythmix Cultural Center, Alameda, CA
2020 Work & Worship at Abrams Claghorn Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2020 The Word at Arc Studios and Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2019 Forty-Eight Pillars, Arc Studios and Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2018 Universal Messages: New Vistas Berkeley Art Center, CA
2017 Art as Spiritual Metaphor: Harrington Gallery, Pleasanton, CA
2017 Crossing to Safety at Abrams Claghorn Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2016 2015 Novus Conceptum at Hannah Bacol Busch Gallery, Bellaire, TX
2015 Juanita Salazar Lowe Art Gallery, Imperial Valley College, Imperial, CA
2015 Intersections: Asian American Narratives, Lindsay Dirkx Brown Art Gallery, San Ramon, CA
2015 'Serenity' at UCSF Women's Health Center, San Francisco, CA
2015, Living with Endangered Languages: Root Division, San Francisco, CA
2014 Sacred Voices: Canton Museum of Art, Canton, OH
2013 UnderCurrents: SomArts Cultural Center, San Francisco, CA
2013 Echo of Islam: Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara, CA
2012 Honoring Women Rights: The National Steinbeck Center, Salinas Valley,CA
2012 Invoking Peace: Euphart Art Museum, De Anza College, Cupertino,CA
2012 Muslim Eye: Marin Community Foundation, Novato, CA
2012 Picturing the word: The Visuality of Text at Doug Adams Gallery, Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, CA
2011 Offerings: Town of Danville Art Gallery, Danville,CA
2010 Visions of Paradise: Art & The Power of Faith at Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, Sonoma,CA
2010 The Visuality of Text at Doug Adams Gallery, Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley,CA
2010 The Art Gallery at Cleveland University, Cleveland, OH
2009 Exaltation of the Insignificant: Terra Galleria, Santa Monica, CA
2009 March-April: Terra Galleria, Santa Monica, CA
2009 Expressions Gallery. Berkeley, CA
2008 “Silk Road,” GE corporate headquarters, Fairfield, CT
2008 “Erasing Borders,” traveling show, New York, NY
2008 “American South Asian Art Festival,” Santa Monica Art Studios, Santa Monica, CA
2008 “Beaux & Eros 2008,” Peninsula Museum of Art, Belmont, CA
2007 “Expanding Circles,” Delaware Contemporary Center for Arts, Wilmington, DE
2007 “Artists from Oakland,” Nest Gallery, Oakland, CA
2007 National juried show at Pro Arts Gallery, Oakland, CA
2007 Stanford Art Spaces, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
2007 “Women on the Verge,” Spring collection 2007, Laguna Beach, CA
2006-2007 Four shows sponsored by Pennsylvania Council on the Arts in State College, Harrisburg, Pittsburg, and Philadelphia, PA
2006 “In a State of Emergency,” Alwan for the Arts, New York, NY
2006 “Eyes on Me: Portraits of Muslim Women,” Gruss Center of Visual Arts, The Lawrenceville School, Lawrenceville, NJ
2005 Spring show, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA
2005 Space Spurgeon Gallery, Santa Ana, CA
2004 State College Gallery, State College, PA
2003 Berks Art Alliance, Reading Museum, Reading, PA
2003 “Muslim Women Artists,” Anne Fisher Gallery, Washington, DC
2003 “Muslim Women Artists,” Ramone Gallery, New York, NY
2002 Book Exhibit, Museum of Contemporary Art, Costa Rica
2002 Diversity Art Gallery, Clark, NJ
2002 Berks Art Alliance, Reading Art Museum, Reading, PA
2001 ArtJaz Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2001 Annual juried exhibition, State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, PA
2001 Miniature art show, Banana Factory, Bethlehem, PA
1999 M A C Show, Cheltenham Center for the Arts, Cheltenham, PA
1999 M A C show, Ramsey’s II, Pittsburgh, PA
1999 Invitational show at United Nations’ Turkish Plaza, New York, NY
1999 Asian American Arts Center, New York, NY
1999 Gallery at 678, New York, NY
1997 CCC Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
1997 Minority Arts Council Show, Philadelphia, PA
1997 Doshi Center for Contemporary Art, Harrisburg, PA
1997 Permanent Mission of India, New York, NY
1997 Allentown Art Museum, Allentown, PA
1996 Main Street Gallery, Nyack, NY
1996 Bixler's Gallery, Stroudsburg, PA
1995 Cedar Crest College, Allentown, PA
1994 Museum Of Natural History, New York, NY
1994 Ceres Art Gallery, New York, NY
1994 La Mama La Gallery, New York, NY
Selected Bibliography
2021, Breaking Religious and Cultural Barriers Through Art ft. Salma Arastu,
2021 American Muslim Project: Bringing people together through Art with Salma Arastu
2020 With canvas and Quran, one artist aims to make Islamic calligraphy a universal language,
2017, CELEBRATION OF CALLIGRAPHY, Sacred Words in Art,
2015 Calligraphic artist Salma Arastu’s MOCRA works aim to build bridges between faiths, St. Louis, MO
2015 The Calligraphic Art of Salma Arastu’ makes art from sacred texts, St. Louis, MO
2015 Salma Arastu: An Appreciation, San Francisco, CA
2015 Dreamweavers: Salma Arastu- A sculptor of the Spirit, CA
2014 Salma Arastu: Lyrical Lines Of Art And Spirituality, CA
2014 A Show of Faith: GALLERY OPENS ITS DOORS TO MIDDLE EASTERN ART
2013 Interview with Voice of America, Washington, DC
2013 Salma Arastu, a Multi-talented Artist, By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
2011 Image Journal: SalmaA Arastu, CA
2009 SF Art News: Alternatives in Alternative Spaces– KALART GALLERY, CA
2010 Michael Singman-Aste: “Flow of Humanity” The Island, Alameda News, Alameda, CA
2009 TIKKUN DAILY: LORD KRISHNA DANCES IN, CA
2009 Salma Arastu’s art book “ The Lyrical Line: Embracing All and Flowing” is published by Half Full Press from Oakland, CA
2009 Rose Khalid:” Arriving on the Art Scene” Azizah, Atlanta, GA Volume 5 Issue 2
2009 Tahseen Usmani: “Conveying Artful Messages” Span, US Embassy, New Delhi, India
2009 Priya Das: India Currents, San Jose, California
2009 Lavina Melwani:” Searching For The Divine” The Indian Express, North American Edition, April 24
2009 Alana Y. Price:” Painting Past Borders” Tikkun, Berkeley, CA, July/August
2009 Priya Das: India Currents, San Jose, California, April
2007 Geoff Gehman: The Morning Call, Allentown, PA, October 16
2007 Fatima Khan: Pakistan Link, Los Angeles, CA, May
2006 Jacqueline Ruyak: Dharma World, Vol. 33, Tokyo, Japan, October – December
2005 Geoff Gehman: “Swan-Song show at Monsoon exhibits unity of the universe,” The Morning Call, Allentown, PA, September 15
2004 Fawad Siddiqui: “Greeting Life,” Horizon, an Islamic art magazine in North America, September
2004 Kubiley Akman: “Modern Dervish [Modern Bir Kadir Dervis],” Gencsanat, a Turkish art magazine, Turkey, May
2004 Kristin E. Holmes: “Art aiming to bring diverse people to one God,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, January 14
2003 Lee Klein: “Art on the Eve of Destruction,” Performing Arts Journal 75, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, September
2003 Diana Cercone: “The Featured Artist - Salma Arastu,” Art Matters, Philadelphia, PA, October
2002 Lee Klein: “This is the one,” NY Arts Magazine, New York, NY, May
2002 Al Zagorsky: “The Lyrical Line and the women,” Times-News, Lehighton, PA, April 13
2002 Geoff Gehrman: “Lyrical pilgrimages, rituals are Arastu’s palette,” The Morning Call, Allentown, PA, April 14
2002 Ken Endick: The Express-Times, Easton, PA, February
2002 Tony Z: “After 9/11 show,” The Morning Call, Allentown, PA, February
1998 Charlotta Kotik: “Salma Arastu, Traditional and Contemporary Imagery,” Salma Arastu: Recent Paintings Catalog, Art Heritage, New Delhi, India, March
1998 Kathryn Williams: “Salma Arastu finds American niche with acrylics, greeting cards,” Inside the Arts, Lehigh Valley, PA, May
1998 Geoff Gehman: “In Easton, graceful illusions by Salma Arastu,” The Morning Call, Allentown, PA, June
1998 Ken Endick: “Islamic Influences,” Express-Times, Easton, PA, June
1998 Geoff Gehman: “Mythic Image could create legends of its own,” The Morning Call, Allentown, PA, May
1998 Kenneth J. Endick: “New art show focuses on Mythic Imagery,” The Express-Times, Easton, PA, May
1998 Lavina Melwani: “Guided by the Unseen,” Art in India Magazine, Mumbai, India, April
1998 Patricia Summers: Art Matters, Philadelphia, PA, June
1998 Isadore LaDuca: “At De Arte Magic,” Irregular, Easton, PA, June 3
1998 Lavina Melwani: “A Bite of the Big Apple,” India Today, North American Special, NY, February
1998 “Admirable Fusion of Grace & Energy,” Asia Observer, New York, NY, January
1998 “Kamlesh Arastu’s Exhibition at ‘A Gallery,’” News India Times, New York, NY, February
1990 The Globe-Times, Bethlehem, PA, August
1989 Joan Campion: “Artist’s Universe is a place of swirling motion,” Free Press, Quakertown, PA
1989 Geoff Gehman: “Artist Arastu tunes her work to dance of life,” The Morning Call, Allentown, PA
1989 Mary Manotta: “Her abstracts reflect Nature,” The Globe-Times, Bethlehem, PA, March
1989 Lavina Melwani: “Catching the fleeting moment,” India Worldwide, New York, NY, March
1988 Tim Higgins: “Open Space group show has variety and vitality,” The Morning Call, Allentown, PA
1984 Promila Sharma: “No halt in Salma’s world,” Kuwait Times, Kuwait, February 2
1984 Fatima Ahmed: “Painting is a way of life for Salma,” Arab Times, Kuwait, February 3
1984 Susan Litherland: “Salma’s Art Reflects Dramatic Movement,” Kuwait Times, Kuwait
1981“Dard Ki Seedhiyan” (Exploring Steps in the realm of Pain) in the Hindi language published with a grant from Andhra Pradesh Sahitya Kala (Literary Arts) Academy, Hyderabad, India.
1979 Keshav Malik: “An Outstanding work by Kamlesh,” The Times of India, New Delhi, India, October
1979 Swadesh Arora: “Rhythmic Paintings,” The Evening News, New Delhi, India, September
1978 Kayhan International, Tehran, Iran, September 13
1978 Tehran Journal, Tehran, Iran, August 20
1978 Tehran Journal, Tehran, Iran, October 26
1978 Kayhan International, Tehran, Iran, October 19
1975 “A Fervent Artist,” The Hindu, Hyderabad, India, February 7
1975 “Striking Paintings by Kamlesh,” The Deccan Chronicle, Hyderabad, India, February 5
1973 Art critic: The Statesman, Calcutta, India, April 2
Public Art
2012 Dancing with the Stars- exhibition at San Rafael City Hall, CA
2010 Public sculpture- Eight feet tall and four feet wide water-jet-cut Steel and Copper “Dancing With the Stars” installed at Port of San Diego, CA
2011 Public sculpture - Ten feet tall and 6 feet wide laser-cut Aluminum sculpture “ The Celebration of Arts” installed at Steel Stacks Bethlehem, PA
Five large painting murals for Beirut Restaurant, Allentown, PA
Selected Public Collections
ISNA Islamic Society of North America, Washington, DC
Zaytuna College, Berkeley, CA
Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, CA
Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara, CA
The County of Alameda, Oakland, CA
Museum of Contemporary Religious Art, St. Louis University, St, Louis, Missouri
Counseling Office in St. Louis. Missouri
Al Mayya LLC, Fujairah -UAE
9/11 Memorial Museum, New York, NY
Islamic Museum of Australia, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Artsquest, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
St. Luke's Hospital, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
Counseling and Wellness Center at University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
State Museum of the Arts, Harrisburg, PA
Museum of Modern Art, Hyderabad, India
Salarjung Museum, Hyderabad, India
National Gallery of Art, New Delhi, India
Lehigh Valley Hospital, Allentown, PA
Pennsylvania Power & Light, Allentown, PA
Spring Health Clinic, Bethlehem, PA
In the US and Canada, more than 300 paintings are in private collections.
Talks and Presentations
2022 - Our Earth: Embracing All Communities, San Francisco Public Library, San Francisco, CA
2022 Our Earth: Embracing All Communities, International Museum of Muslim Cultures, Jackson MS
2022 An Inter-Religious Conference, Vancouver School of Theology, Vancouver, Canada
2018 “Seeking Oneness” talk presented at Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, CA
2017, Search For Meaning Book Festival, Seattle University’s School of Theology, Seattle, WA
2015 Museum of Contemporary Religious Art, So That you Know each other, St. Louis University, St. Louis, MO
2015, “Unity of Sacred Symbols, Words”, Commonwealth Club of San Francisco, CA
2013 Celebration of Calligraphy and Journeys of Love, Leonardo Art Science Evening Rendezvous
2013 Mythos Art Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2012 Stanford University International Club, Francisco, CA
2011 Postmodern Views on Religion and Art, Westphalian Wilhelms-University, Münster, Germany
2011 A blending of Hindu and Islamic Traditions, Commonwealth Club of San Francisco, CA
Curatorial Experience
2020 “Work & Worship” with an exhibition of Muslim Women Artists from the Bay Area at Abrams Claghorn Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2020 Another Exhibition “ The Word: Visual Interpretations” with Local Muslim Women Artists is invited by ARC Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2018 “ Universal Messages: New Vistas” with an exhibition of Muslim Women Artists from the Bay Area at Berkeley Art Center, CA
Publications
• Six books are published with poems and paintings.
Dard Ki Seedhiyan- Poem Collection in Hindi, 1981
The Lyrical Line 2008
Turning Rumi: Singing Verses of Love Unity and Freedom, 2012
Unity of Sacred Texts and Symbols, 2014
Celebration of Calligraphy, 2015
Our Earth: Embracing All Communities, 2021
