"Nature at Work": Manouchehri House, Kashan

Manouchehri House in collaboration with Dastan is pleased to announce “Nature at Work”, a presentation by four artist at Manouchehri House Gallery. The Exhibition will open on March 11, 2018 and continue until April 20. Works by Avin Farhadi, Nariman Farrokhi, Behnaz Fatemi, and Kimia Kamvari are featured in this exhibition.
The common quality of the works presented in this exhibition are that they have been inspired by nature, both in technique and content. Avin Farhadi frequently visits nature and uses her direct approach to work on her pieces. Hence, her work often has organic qualities. In her paintings, she uses spray and oil paint, and even tree branches. In Kimia Kamvari’s work, ‘spore-prints’ are actual mushroom spores fixed on sandpaper. Nariman Farrokhi invites us to seeing his layered perception of nature, and Behnaz Fatemi, re-introduces us to nature through its dominant forces.
In this exhibition, all four artists have had their eyes on nature: a nature which is falling into its death to come alive again in spring. Behnaz Fatemi, inspired by famous art history works, and the idea of natural deterioration, focuses on the role of nature in civilization, and nature’s penchant for human life. Avin Farhadi —who spends much time in nature working on her pieces— not only paints natural elements, but uses tree branches directly to create prints with a wide range of shades. Kimia Kamvari has been working with organic and natural material for a few years and abandoned using synthetic materials. She uses a specific type of mushrooms from Basque that dies and leaves ink-like traces during full-moon. Kimia Kamvari fixes those traces on sandpaper, creating a detailed trace of the mushroom’s death. And Nariman Farrokhi, using his frank technique and joyful colors, reminds us of a different side of natural life, which despite its complexity, brings a simpler universe to the viewer’s mind. In “Nature at Work”, perhaps nature is not present the way it is expected to, but is perceived through the different inspirations it has provided for these four artists.

About the Artists

Avin Farhadi (b. 1984, Isfahan, Iran) is a graduate of Law (Azad University, Isfahan, 2006) and Painting (Isfahan Art University, 2013). Her work has been featured in two solo exhibitions and over ten group shows in Iran. In her work, she is inspired, both in content and technique, by nature and its materials.
Nariman Farrokhi (b. 1986, Tehran, Iran) has developed a unique style of expression in his art, mixing what he observes in his everyday life with a hyperactive sense of imagination and rearrangement. His art, like his uniquely cool character, has a free spirit, presenting various experiences using simple materials and techniques while managing to take the viewer along both as an observer and a companion.
Behnaz Fatemi (b. 1991, Isfahan, Iran) studied painting at the University of Guilan (Rasht, Iran). Her work has been exhibited in one solo exhibition (2015, Matn-e-Emrooz Gallery, Isfahan, Iran) and over ten group exhibitions in Tehran, Rasht and Isfahan. She presented a research-based project at Electric Room (A Dastan:Outside Project) in 2017.
Kimia Kamvari (b. 1986, Cologne, Germany) is an Iranian visual artist based in Basque country. She is a graduate of Painting from Faculty of Art and Architecture, Azad University, Tehran. Her work has been featured in several group exhibitions in Iran and Europe. Most recently, she was a resident at Tabakalera International Center for Contemporary Culture, where she started her practice of using organic matter, leading to “Nature Change” series, which later contributed to the forming of her “Apeiron” series (first shown at Electric Room in 2018).