An exhibition of paintings by the young artist Arash Shirinbab is on display at the gallery of Sa’dabad cultural-historical complex.
In the exhibition titled ‘Sparks of Desert’, Shirinbab has displayed his works of a new painting style, created and coined by himself, called ‘Poem Painting’. It is a style in which he uses both linguistic and aesthetic powers of words to create a poetic visual art piece.
Raised in the arid city of Kerman, his combination of calligraphy – particularly Kufic (the oldest calligraphic form of the various Arabic scripts), painting, and poetry is intended as a dialogue between distinct art forms and cultures, in which visual elements display a mysterious and multifaceted world; one which reflects both his own Persian identity and contemporary, universally comprehensible artistic values.
More than 25 works of his personal style paintings with acrylic on canvases in a variety of sizes are showcased at the exhibition. “They embody poems that have direct or indirect manifestation of the desert, or are written by poets of my hometown,” Shirinbab said.
The artist cited art as the element that shapes his personal and professional life. “Art must be used as an exceptional tool to creatively view and analyze every aspect of one’s life,” he said.
Shirinbab is co-founder and director of Ziya Art Center in Berkeley, California and the national Society of Arabic Script Calligraphers in America. His artworks and artistic activities are covered in several print and online media including Level 25 Artjournal, Northern California Chronicle in Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, Aslan Media, and Iranian newspapers Hamshahri Javan, and Iran.
Global Exhibitions
He has also participated in over 50 group and 10 individual exhibitions in the US, Canada, Spain, Italy, Poland, France, and Iran, including the biennial exhibition at the Contemporary Calligraphy Museum of Moscow in Russia, the exhibition of ‘Muslim Eyes: An Exhibition of Religious and Secular Art by Muslim Artists’ at Triton Museum of Art in California, ‘ Invoking Peace’ in De Anza College Euphrat Museum Of Art in California, and ‘The Museum Belongs to Everyone’ in Kunsthaus-Berlin-Marbella Museum in Spain.
Among Shirinbab’s awards are the first prize and Best of Show Award for the ‘50 Shades of Gray’ competition by Focus Point & Shape Gallery, Special Merit Award for the 3rd Annual International Animals Art competition by Light Space & Time Gallery, and Special Recognition Award for ‘My Art’ international competition by Art Quench Magazine.
The gallery of Sa’dabad Palace, restored and added to the cultural-historical complex, is open to art enthusiasts till March 20 at Kamal Taheri St., Fallahi St., Valiasr Ave., Tehran.
