Cartoon by Alayin Rey.
Alayin Rey - also referred to as Ree Raz - is an Iranian artist living in exile in Turkey. An illustrator, author, designer, poet and cartoonist, he is dedicated to turning visual art into a tool to educate children.
Early life
Alayin Rey was born as Meysam Hosseini in 1983 in Shahr-e Ray, a city in the metropolitan area of Greater Tehran. On his website, he describes his childhood as a difficult time. Despite the fact that he was unable to pursue his passion for art academically, he began working as a self-taught artist, designer and illustrator. Later in life, he took several art courses to gain experience and train his skills.
Career
Rey's artworks have been exhibited internationally and he has illustrated several children's books. He has also worked on comic book projects and on storyboards for animation and children's movies. In addition, he became a teacher in caricature and cartoon at the Cultural and Art Organization of the Tehran Municipality. He was a design and cartoon editor of several dailies and magazines, including Development Magazine, Citizen Newspaper, the Iranian Red Crescent newspaper and worked as consultant editor for the Shahrvand newspaper. As an expert, Rey was involved in the Tehran Vahdat Hall Gallery.
Various cartoons by Alayin Rey.
Themes
Many of Rey's artworks have been inspired by his childhood and the difficulties he faced throughout his life. Recurring themes in his paintings are free speech, the emancipation of women and the power of communication in all forms. One of his main goals is to visually demonstrate the importance of education, as well as the power of the written word and the importance of individual opinions. To empathise with children and adolescents from similar backgrounds who face educational challenges, and to nurture and introduce art and innovation, he has donated one million books to needy children through the Child Survival Campaign.
One of Rey's tools is the Frog Project, a series of resources for teachers, pedagogues and other specialists who are looking for an exciting story that can be used to educate. Rey describes his lesson plan as a way "to help students understand and use vocabulary words in context, so that they can read more fluently, understand the author's choice of words and gain deeper insight into a word's meaning." For instance, in 2023, he created an electronic book that helps children learn English through explanatory visuals of the alphabet.
Move to Turkey
Rey's fight for free speach and women's rights have not been without risks in his home country Iran. A 34-meter drawing by him showing the effects of modern urbanisation caused serious controversy. Some of his cartoons in well-known journals and papers like Sanat va Toseh and Sharherwand resulted in daily threats and pressure from the Revolutionary Guards and Iranian security forces. One particular cartoon, drawn after US President Barack Obama had met the Iranian president Hassan Rouhani, depicted two hands holding the US and Iranian flags, forming the dove of peace. After publication, the cartoonist was beaten up by unknown assailants who kept asking him why he had put the US flag over Iran's flag and why the Iranian character had no beard. Other paintings and cartoons caused threats as well. In 2015, he managed to obtain his military service card and passport and leave the country. The Paris-based Reporters Without Borders took up his case and supported his request for protection and inclusion in the UN resettlement programme. Since then, Alayin Rey has been living in exile in Turkey.
Alayin Rey.