Dialogue: Shahpour Pouyan Marwan Sahmarani

Dialogue: Shahpour Pouyan + Marwan Sahmarani

Dialogue: Shahpour Pouyan and Marwan Sahmarani is a two-person exhibition by Marwan Sahmaraniand Shahpour Pouyan specially commissioned for Volta 8, Basel. The exhibition is the culmination of a dialogue between the two artists who both draw on the past to demonstrate the timeless and cyclical nature of violence, weaving historical and cultural influence into their work to explore contemporary notions of power, war and death. Shahpour Pouyan and Marwan Sahmarani provide a prophetic and timely reminder of the recurrent wars and unrest in a region where conflict is a constant self-perpetuating reality. Whereas Shahpour draws from the culture and traditions of his own coun-try, Iran, Sahmarani references a broad sweep of art history, from the art of the Late Gothic and Western Renaissance period, to Expressionist and Action Painting.

For Volta 8 Sahmarani presents Huroub (wars), three new large-scale works on paper depictingfrenzied epic battle scenes in paint, ink, textile and charcoal. The works combine scenes from historical and contemporary warfare. Medieval villains with swords, spears, horses and medieval armour are intertwined with demonic figures in modern military outfits reminiscent of SS uniforms, all set against a cacophony of mutilated bodies. These are bold and beautiful images that capture a passion, energy and violence emblematic of both historical and contemporary acts of destruction. Juxtaposed against these paintings are Pouyan’s sus-pended Projectiles - sculptural installations of intricately decorat-ed armour and antique-style military helmets, which are symbols of dominance and power, but also of luxury and refinement.

Shahpour Pouyan was born in 1979 in Isfahan, Iran and is cur-rently studying for a Masters of Fine Art at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. He has a Masters in Fine Art (Painting) from Tehran University of Art and a Bachelor of Fine Art (Painting) from the University of Science and Culture. Pouyan is the recipient of the Tehran Contemporary Museum of Art’s grant of residence at International Cite Des Artes, Paris, France and has exhibited in various solo exhibitions in Tehran and Dubai and group shows in Paris, New York, Beirut, Canada and Serbia. Earlier works from his Projectiles series are found in important private collections in Istanbul, Hong Kong, Dubai and London.

Marwan Sahmarani was born in Lebanon in 1970, and currently lives and works in Beirut. He left Lebanon in 1989 and moved to Paris to study at l’École Supérieur d’Art Graphique. He has had solo exhibitions in Beirut, London, Montreal and Dubai and group exhibitions in Washington and Mexico. He has participated in a variety of group exhibitions including ‘Told/ Untold /Retold’ at Mathaf, Doha (2010), ‘All about Beirut’ at Kunsthalle whiteBOX, Munich (2010) and the ‘The Feast of the Damned’ at the Mu-seum of Art and Design, New York (2010). In 2010 Sahmarani was the recipient of the Abraaj Capital Art Prize and his work. ‘The Feast of the Damned’ was showcased at Art Dubai that year. His works form part of the permanent collection of Mathaf, Doha and Abraaj Capital, Dubai.

Shahpour PouyanProjectile 6, 2012Iron and brassHeight 210 cm

Shahpour PouyanProjectile 7, 2012Iron and brassHeight 210 cm

Shahpour PouyanProjectile 8, 2012Iron and brassHeight 185 cm

Marwan SahmaraniHuroub 5, 2012Water color, ink, varnish, and oil stick and textile140 x 200 cm

Marwan SahmaraniHuroub 3, 2012Water color, ink, varnish, and oil stick and textile140 x 200 cm

Marwan SahmaraniHuroub 6, 2012Water color, ink, varnish, and oil stick and textile140 x 200 cm

SHAHPOUR POUYAN

Born in IranLives and works in New York, U.S.A

EDUCATION2011 MFA, Student Painting, Pratt Art Institute, NY, U.S.A2007 MFA, Painting, Tehran University of Art, Tehran, Iran2004 BFA, Painting, Art University, Tehran, Iran

SOLO EXHIBITIONS2011 Full Metal Jacket, LawrieShabibi Gallery, Dubai, U.A.E2010 The Hooves, Sixty Six Art Gallery, Tehran, iran2009 Bana Bar In, Nar Gallery, Tehran, Iran2009 XVA Gallery Bastakia, Dubai, U.A.E.2008 Towers, Ave Gallery, Tehran, Iran2002 University of Science and Culture, Tehran, Iran2002 Taranhane Azad Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran2000 University of Science and Culture, Tehran, Iran

GROUP EXHIBITIONS2011 NYC Curate, Rush Gallery, New York, U.S.A.2011 Artbeat Istanbul, Center Lutif Kirdar, Istanbul, Turkey2011 Contemporary Sculpture and the Liability of Forms: The Expo 90, Tehran, Iran2011 State Gallery of fine arts, Hyderabad, India2010 Performance Box Curatorship, Mohsen Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran2010 The Emerging Iranian Scene, The Running Horse Contemporary Art Space, Beirut, Lebanon 2010 Total Arts at The Courtyard, Dubai, U.A.E2010 Sous Le Radar, JTM, Paris, France2010 Under Radar Revelation, Sixty Six Gallery, Tehran, Iran2010 1389, Azad Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran2009 “Baz in che shouresh ast,” Video Project, Silk Road Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran2009 1001 Colors, Canvas Gallery, New York, U.S.A.2009 The 1st International RoamingBiennial of Tehran, themed Urban Jealousy, Magacin MKM, Belgrade, Serbia2009 Auto Portraits, Azad Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran2009 Nar Gallery, Tehran, Iran2008 Third International Digital Miniprinte Exhibition- Le Centre d’artistes Voix Visuelle, Ottawa, Canada2005 100 Paintings- 100 Painters, Golestan Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran2004 Tehran Art Expose, Tehran, Iran2003 Tehran Art Colleges Students’ Paintings, Niavaran Culture house Gallery, Tehran, Iran

2003 Teachers and Students of Science and Culture University, Bahman Art and Culture House, Tehran, Iran

PUBLIC AND PRIVATE COLLECTIONS2011 Rami Farook, Dubai, UAE 2008 Zoroastrian Cultural Institute, Paris, France 2006 Fereydon Ave,Tehran, Iran 2003 Contemporary Museum of Art, Tehran, Iran BIBLIOGRAPHY 2011 Ali Bakhtiari,”Path and Glory”, Contemporary Practices, 1 November2011 Amy Sutcliffe,”Power Play”, Art In The City, 24 May 2011 Jyoti Kalsi”Allegory of Authority”, Gulf News, 13 May 2011 Charlie R Neyra, “Full Metal Jacket”, Khaleej Times. 29 April 2011 Jason Rezaian, “Inside Iran: The Art of Resistance”, Global Post, 19 April 2011 Ali Bakhtiari, “One to Watch”, Canvas Guide,16 April 2011 Chandana Khan, “An Art Bonanza”, Deccan Chronicle,7 March 2011 Ingo Arend, “It’s All About Change”, Nafas Art Magazine, February 2010 Bavand Behpour, “Matn va Tasvir”, Reviews.Behpour.com, November 2011 Joelle Zebouni, “L’Art sous l’ombrelle des Mollahs”,Femme Magazine, 15 October 2010 Daniel Barney, “Iranian artists portray life under regime”, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 September2010 Maryam Dallal, “Insights from within the Iranian society”,Al Akhbar, Lebanon, 18 September2010 Lucy Fielder, “Emerging form under the radar”,Now Lebanon, Lebanon 9 September 2010 Resha Almaleh, “Young artists in total art”, Albayan, Dubai 3 August 2010 Fatma Salem, “Pictures of the times”, Gulf News, Dubai 23 July 2009 Soheila Niakan, “Towers come behind you”, Hamshahri, Tehran ISSN 1735-6385 Vol.17, No.4843, 25 May 2009 Navid Farzi, “Interview with Shahpour Pouyan”, Roozan, Tehran No:1490, 11 May 2009 Muhammad Yusuf, “Talking towers”, The Gulf Today, Sharjah, 14 Feb 2009 Raziqueh Hussain, “Power and Glory,” Khaleej Times, Dubai, Vol. 20 February 2009 XPRESS, ”Controversial Towers”. Dubai, 5 February 2008 Aftab News, “Towers by Shahpour Pouyan” 25 November 2008 ISNA(Iranian Students News Agency), “Painting exhibition :Towers” Code: 8709-02577, 24 November 2006 IRNA (news agency) reported on my mural at Tehran Art University, 29 Apr PUBLICATIONS 2010 “Emad Sculptures in Aun “, Reviews.Behpour.com, November, 2010 “Beheading in Tehran”( performance by Bita Fayyazi), http://www.iranartreview.com. 2008 “Critical Remarks on False Semantics”, in Tandis, Tehran,Jun.5, .p.26. 2007 “A Safe Space for Art”, Hamshahri, Tehran, Oct.9, .p.18.

MARWAN SAHMARANI

Born 1970 Beirut, LebanonLives and Works in Beirut, Lebanon.

EDUCATION1989 - 1994 l’École Supérieure d’Art Graphique Penninghen, Paris (France)

SOLO EXHIBITIONS2011 Marie Marie, The Devil In Me Has Taken You For A Ride, Lawrie Shabibi Gallery, Dubai, UAE2011 The Wolf Is Crying Like A Child, Galerie Kashya Hildebrand, Zurich, Switzerland2010 The Dictators: Studies For A Monument, Selma Feriani Gallery, London, UK2010 The Feast of the Damned, Art Dubai, Abraaj Capital Art Prize, Dubai, UAE2009 The Dictators: Studies for a Monument, Boutique 1 Gallery, Dubai, UAE2007 Can You Teach Me How to Fight?, The Third Line Gallery, Dubai, UAE2006 Paintings And Drawings (1990-2005), Mogabgab Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon2006 Masturation, Ard Bia Gallery, Galway, Ireland2005 Beirut el Koubra, Mogabgab Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon2004 Mecca Cola, Clair Obscur, Montreal, Canada2004 No-body, Mogabgab Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon2003 Non-dit, Mogabgab Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon2003 Non-dit, Alternative, Montreal, Canada1997 Le Prophète, Mogabgab Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon

GROUP EXHIBITIONS2011 The Changing Room: Arab Reflections On Praxis And Times, Spazio Qubi Gallery, Turin, Italy2011 Heroes And Villains, Lawrie Shabibi Gallery, Dubai, UAE2011 Rebirth, Beirut Exhibition Centre, Beirut, Lebanon2010 All About Beirut, Kunsthalle whiteBOX, Munich, Germany2010 Convergence: New Art from Lebanon, American University Museum at the Katzen Art Center, Washington, D.C., USA2007 Espejismos: Contemporary Art from Middle East and North Africa, International Festival of Puebla, Puebla, Mexico2004 Pensées Et Measures, La Fabriq, Montreal, Canada1994 Le Prophète, Espace E.S.A.G, Paris, France

AWARDS AND PRIZES2010 Abraaj Capital Art Prize, Dubai, UAE

BIENNALES AND MUSEUM EXHIBITIONS2010 Abraaj Capital Art Prize 2010, Museum of Art & Design, New York, NY, USA2010 Told/Untold/Retold, Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha, Qatar2011 Between A Rock And A Hard Place, 3rd Thessaloniki Biennale, Greece 2011 Third Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art

PUBLICATIONSMarwan Sahmarani in conversation with Mariam Hamdy, The Changing Room Project: Arab Reflections on Praxis and Times, Turin, Italy, 2011 (exhibition catalogue)Told/Untold/Retold: 23 Stories of Journeys Through Time and Space, Mathaf Arab Mu-seum of Modern Art, 2010 (exhibition catalogue)Marwan Sahmarani: Allegories In/Of Painting, Murtaza Vali, 2007 (exhibition catalogue)

SELECTED PRESS AND MEDIARoad to Dubai: Marwan Sahmarani, Simone Sebastian, Satellite Voices, February 2012In the Belly of the Beast: Marwan Sahmarani’s Visual Mastery, Jareh Das, Mojeh, January 2012A New Canvas, Jyoti Kalsi, Gulf News, December 2011Marks of Being, Rebecca Anne Proctor, Canvas Guide, December 2011Art & Artist: Marwan Sahmarani, Richard Labaki, Lifestyle Magazine Middle East, 2011Voters Unanimous in Art Winner Choice, Alice Johnson, Gulf News, August 2010The 2009 – 2010 Abraaj Capital Art Prize, Asmaa Al-Shabibi, Muraqqa Online, October 2009Curators of Culture, Ed Lake, The National, September 2009Art Takes Centre Stage, Khaleej Times, April 2009The Dictators – Studies for a Monument, The Changing Room Project, 2009A Prodigal Son Returns to Paint Kaelen Wilson-Goldie, The Daily Star, March 2006Marwan Sahmarani The Indisputable Truth, Nada Al-Awar, Canvas, 2005

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