Story & Lesson Highlights with Golareh Safarian of Los Angeles Greater Area

We recently had the chance to connect with Golareh Safarian and have shared our conversation below.

Golareh, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
The steps that lead up to my art studio in my Lake Arrowhead cabin are a portal into another dimension. The studio itself, often bathed in the golden California sunlight that conquers the A-frame structure most days of the year, is a place where time stretches out like a lazy cat on a summer afternoon. I don’t just paint in there. I explore, experiment, and grow, evolving as an artist and as a human.

In there, I surrender to the creative process. Sometimes, I sit in silence, close my eyes, and meditate on a new creative project or painting series. At other times, I spend hours building my creative vision boards, surrounding myself with colors and textures that speak to me, pulling quotes that capture moods and energies I want to channel and translate into colors and brushstrokes. Then I have what I call “lab days.” These are some of my favorites, vibing with a playful, experimental, fun energy empowered by genuine curiosity.

My sister often says that when I go into my art studio, I can disappear for days. She’s not lying.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Golareh. I’m a contemporary visual and video artist experimenting in various disciplines — from fine art oil paintings to AI-generated cinematic films. I like to play with both analogue and digital expressions, loving to lose myself in the textures of an energetic brushstroke just as much as in the video frames of an action sequence. This fluidity between mediums is something I thoroughly enjoy and thrive on, and it has helped me live a truly creative life.

When I look back at my artistic journey, which began in 2003, I’m surprised by how consistent certain themes and elements have been throughout, even if the expressions themselves have evolved and become more refined to reflect my personal style. I have always been pulled towards the study of the oscillation between hope and despair, energies that affect how we experience the reality around us, and how we respond to it.

In the last five years, my paintings have taken a slightly darker vibe, with thicker impasto work that captures the energies of chaos and rage and elements of light and love that either peek through gunky abysses or attempt to conquer them altogether. Obviously, a lot of this new direction is motivated by my experiences as a first-generation immigrant born in Iran, and how I see the world around me.

Currently, I’m working on a new painting series called “Gothic Euphoria” — an abstract oil and acrylic series that emotes the struggle between rage and calm, chaos and peace, death and life. I’m already on my fourth piece in the series and excited to see where the collection will take me.

Aside from my painting, I’m very fortunate to live a creative life that extends into my business and career. In March of 2026, MindTripz Inc., the creative agency I founded when I left Fox Broadcasting Company, will celebrate its 10th anniversary. When I first started the company in 2016, it was with the intention to offer solutions in development, production, marketing, and distribution that were creative and data-driven. In the first five years, the company organically evolved into more of a content creation agency, helping to create documentary-style short and long-form content in the education, health and wellness, and travel and leisure sectors. Today, MindTripz Inc. is a creative intelligence agency — a fusion of human imagination and generative AI integration. We design intelligent creative workflows that merge storytelling, art direction and emerging technology to produce next-generation visual media and branded experiences. Working with select clients who share this creative ethos, MindTripz transforms abstract ideas into cinematic and emotionally resonant content that feels both human and future-forward.

A recent example of this approach is “The Phoenix of Iridia” — a short film I directed and produced through MindTripz Inc. I used Midjourney to create the image frames, Runway ML to generate the video sequences, and ElevenLabs for voice. The process became an exploration of how human creativity and machine intelligence can collaborate , not to imitate one another, but to expand what storytelling can be. Traditional cinematic methods like shot composition, pacing, and continuity had to be reimagined for an AI-generated workflow, where control comes less from the camera and more from the prompt, iteration and curation. “The Phoenix of Iridia” reflects MindTripz’s commitment to crafting intelligent, emotionally resonant work that merges art with technology.

Building on that foundation, another direction I’m developing through MindTripz Inc. is the creation of original IP. These are projects that extend beyond client work and explore new ways to blend art, storytelling, and technology. Some of this is already underway through my other companies: The Healing Salon, an online mindfulness and meditation center, and Gogimogi, a brand that began as an e-commerce concept and is now evolving into a creative space centered on play, imagination and the celebration of curiosity. Both are in rebranding and redevelopment. Together, they represent the next phase for MindTripz — a creative environment where distinct ideas and voices can take shape through experimentation, collaboration and intelligent design, using generative tools and human imagination to craft experiences that feel both emotionally grounded and future-focused.

All in all, between my painting series and the projects evolving under the MindTripz umbrella, I spend my days creating, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
If I had to name a part of myself that has served its purpose, it would be the version of passion that once defined me — a restless, impulse-driven fuel that pushed me toward every idea with urgency and sometimes even with aggression. In my younger years, that kind of fire was necessary, and very much a part of my identity. It taught me resilience, kept me curious, and carried me through the chaos of the immigrant experience, helping me reach my education and career goals. But with time and experience, that passion has matured. It’s less about chasing everything that sparks and more about learning where to direct the flame, picking and choosing the experiences that can help elevate me as a human and as a spiritual being. My hope now is to anchor this more refined passion in calm intelligence, a steadiness I’m still learning, one that listens before it moves and creates from awareness rather than reaction.

When you were sad or scared as a child, what helped?
When I think about what helped me when I was sad or scared as a child, I first have to remember what those feelings were rooted in. As a first-generation immigrant, my family often faced long periods of separation and the uncertainty of rebuilding a sense of home and learning to merge who we were with who we were becoming. What helped me through those moments of fear and disconnection was playful curiosity. Exploring, creating, and learning about new things helped me feel centered again. That instinct to turn toward curiosity instead of fear has stayed with me ever since; it’s the same creative energy that continues to guide my work and how I move through the world today.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What truths are so foundational in your life that you rarely articulate them?
When I think about the truths that are so foundational to me that I rarely articulate them, equality is the first that comes to mind: the belief that every being has the right to exist freely, to pursue happiness, and to provide for themselves and their loved ones without fear or oppression. I believe people should be free to live, love, and express their spirituality or beliefs in whatever way brings them peace, so long as it doesn’t limit another’s right to do the same. I also believe every creature on this planet deserves to live in harmony. These values shape the way I move through the world; they’re not just ideas I speak about, but principles I try to live by. They’re why I’m vegan, why I stay open to learning, and why I continue to explore and create. In many ways, these truths form the foundation of both my art and my career, a reminder that creative expression, at its best, is an act of empathy and respect for all living things.

Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. If you laid down your name, role, and possessions—what would remain?
If I were to lay down my name, my roles, and everything I’ve built, what would remain is curiosity, love, and creative energy. Those have always been the constant, quiet forces that move me forward. I hope that energy is reflected not only in the relationships I’ve nurtured but in the body of creative work I’ll leave behind. Whether through my paintings, my films, or the ideas explored through my companies MindTripz Inc., The Healing Salon, and Gogimogi, my intention has always been the same: to elevate the human experience and to keep learning. Even in my “Gothic Euphoria” series, where I explore darker emotional landscapes, the work is ultimately about the light that survives within them — the hope, resilience, and transformation that emerge through creation. To me, calm intelligence, playful curiosity, and creative expression are all paths toward understanding ourselves and one another a little better.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.golarehartgallery.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/golareh
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/golarehsafarian/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/G0lareh
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/c/thehealingsalon
• Other: https://www.mindtripz.com
  

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