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Hadi Tabatabai is an Iranian-born abstract artist known for his paintings of monochromatic squares and rectangles. Born in Mashhad, Iran, in 1964, he moved to the United States in 1977, earning a BS in Industrial Technology from California State University, Fresno, and a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1995. Tabatabai's art focuses on liminality, aiming to create a sense of being on the edge of perception where forms almost dissolve into light and space. By meticulously removing distractions, he seeks to evoke pure sensation, inviting viewers to engage with subtle form, color, and light in a highly focused manner. His art describes a space that is as much an idea as a physical place, a realm of quiet contemplation, allowing his work to resonate deeply and encourage introspection and heightened sensitivity to visual nuance. His work has been exhibited widely in the U.S., London, Bonn, and Turin, with solo shows at Anthony Grant Gallery in New York, Brian Gross Fine Art in San Francisco, and Inde/Jacobs in Marfa, Texas. His art is in collections at The Delaware Art Museum, The Colby College Museum of Art, and the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco.

The artist biographies for Witness Nothing were collaboratively written by curatorial interns Julyet Carillo and Elisa Leyva, with the oversight of Henry Schulte Assistant Curator of Practice. The content was compiled from a variety of sources, including personal websites, institutional biographies, critical essays, artist interviews, and exhibition texts. A comprehensive bibliography of all sources used is provided below. It is important to note that Gemini, a Google AI, was utilized in the editing process to condense and refine the initial drafts into more concise paragraphs, using the prompt: "Use the following information to shorten each artist bio to one paragraph.”

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