Two series of works by veteran visual artist, Fereydoun Ave, are on exhibit at two venues at Dastan Gallery.
Dastan Basement – a space for contemporary art exhibition – began the new Iranian calendar year (starting March 21) by displaying seven works on paper by the modern artist, Honaronline reported
According to the director of the gallery Hormoz Hematian, the exhibition comprises two sections, the first is ‘7+1 Drawings on Paper’ which includes seven works created with mixed techniques. “Watercolor is the dominant technique in this work as it is the artist’s favorite style,” he said.
After several years of work to the series, Ave completed it in summer 2014. Most of it took form in Syros (or Siros or Syra – a Greek island in the Cyclades).
“Each of these ‘7+1’ works started at a different point in time, but were finished simultaneously,” the artist says about his collection. “Watercolor is my favorite, but blossom-filled summer winds in Greece inspired me to use other mediums such as pastel, acrylic and pencils.”
The second part of the exhibition ‘Favorite Signals, Signs, and Objects’ is an installation artwork set up at Sam Art Gallery - Dastan’s exterior branch specializing in the works of Iranian masters and prominent artists.
“The idea is that the audience first get familiar with Ave’s recent work in the basement space and then get to know him and his taste at the outside branch,” said Hematian, adding that it will help people in understanding what settings and which elements inspire the artist to create his works.
The installation is in fact a curation of assorted objects or artwork. Run-of-the-mill stuff including a piece of fabric, a vase, or a simple sculpture are set next to works by recognized national and international artists like Jasper Johns, Mohsen Vaziri-Moghaddam, Farhad Moshiri, Ardeshir Mohasses, Bita Fayyazi, and Mehrdad Pourali-Nazari.
Born in 1945 in Tehran, Ave studied applied art, theatre and film in England and the United States. Now he manages his time between Tehran, Paris and sometimes Dubai and London where he has been involved in the ‘Magic of Persia’ contemporary art prize, inspiring and supporting new generation of Iranian artists, among whom is the founder of Iranian contemporary pop, Farhad Moshiri. In 1984 he established Tehran’s first art space.
His works are in the possession of such important museums in the world as The British Museum, La Caisse des Depot et Consignation and Centre Georges Pompidou Collection in Paris, and Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art. The most recent acquisition of his ‘Rostam in the Dead of Winter’ was made by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in February 2014.
His latest exhibitions opened Friday and will run for two weeks at Dastan’s Basement, No 6., Bidar St., Fereshteh St. and Sam Art Gallery at Sam Center, Fereshteh St, Tehran.
