Books
Book: New Perspectives in Contemporary Iranian Art
Books
It is near impossible to write a book on contemporary art in Iran without establishing a socio-political foundation. In a country where all aspects of life have been politicised in the last 30 years – that is since the overthrow of the monarchy and the establishment of the Islamic Republic – the visual arts, in particular have been reflecting, analysing and attempting to make some sense of the complexities of this ancient land.
Much has been written about the Iranian ‘new wave’ cinema. Films by such directors as Abbas Kiarostami and Mohsen Makhmalbaf have won awards at international film festivals and have become part of the vocabulary of contemporary world cinema. With such public and critical success one can be justified in asking why so little has been written and exhibited on Iranian contemporary art. The latest book on the subject ‘Different Sames: New Perspectives in Contemporary Iranian Art’ aims to change all this.
See more images from the book Different Sames: New Perspectives in Contemporary Iranian Art
Artist and historian Hamid Keshmirshekan sets the scene for this 300-plus page visually and intellectually stimulating book by tracing the foundation of a contemporary art movement in Iran to the late 19th century when a number of intellectuals travelled to the west and came under its influence.
The trend peaked in the 1960s under the influence of the last king; Mohammad Reza Shah’s aspiration to create the ‘Great Civilisation’, a rather superficial western-orientated art movement, was actively encouraged by the court. This gave rise to an art movement ith a rather limited indigenous flavour, only accessible to the privileged classes.
The Islamic Republic, which took power in 1979, immediately rejected all modern art as decadent, excluding any discourse. It didn’t help that most forward-thinking artists immediately fled the country for Europe and the US. What replaced the vacuum was reminiscent of Socialist Realism, an art form dominated by the large propaganda murals that for years decorated the urban landscape. This so called ‘Irano-Islamic’ art also included the return of calligraphy, albeit using only religious texts.
Contemporary Iranian art was born at the close of the 20th century under the reformist president Mohammad Khatami. He actively encouraged an external dialogue with western artists as well as with the large Iranian diaspora, for example inviting New York-based artist Shirin Neshat to exhibit in Iran. The internet opened the window for Iranian artists to join the global debate. A new generation of artists, many of them women, emerged and began expressing themselves through other mediums such as video installation and art photography.
Which brings us to the present. The current art scene is dominated by a younger generation - who incidentally make up over 60% of the population. However, unlike their contemporaries, and the diaspora, they are unconnected with the revolution as they have little or no memory of a pre-revolution Iran. According to Keshmirshekan, these artists are depicting their own biography within a society undergoing radical change rather than making a political statement like their predecessors.
The author says that many reject a ‘fixed, unified identity’ opting instead for a hybrid, negotiable one. They are determined to address the issues of their Iran, not of its ‘Persian’ past. Their references to traditional and cultural values are often tongue-in-cheek and satirical – and the images at times a kitsch interpretation of traditional Iranian forms.
This is incidentally the same young generation that are at the forefront of the current social unrest in Iran. Their campaign for reform is intimately linked with new technology - hence the ‘Twitter revolution’. Their struggle isn’t necessarily about ‘isms’ and ideology but about being part of a connected world, and of course being free.
Different Sames is an A-Z of the work of over a hundred contemporary artists working both in and out of Iran. The choice is interesting and represents a mix of emerging and established artists sourced by the editor Hossein Amirsadeghi and curatorial director Maryam Homayoun-Eisler, herself an avid collector of contemporary art.
The visual element is contextualised by essays by art historians, as well as interviews with some of the more prominent artists, collectors and curators. Different Sames joins the recently published Iranian Photography Now and Urban Iran, all part of an ongoing desire to explore Iran through graffiti and street art, photography and other forms of visual arts. Ultimately, this is a culture eager to form its own visual language.
Subscribe to Wallpaper* magazine
Sign up for our free weekly newsletterINFORMATION
Different Sames: New Perspectives in Contemporary Iranian Art’ - Editor Hossein Amirsadeghi - Publisher Thames & Hudson - Price £48
