Reza Lavassani | "Qaaf"

+2 Gallery is proud to announce the solo exhibition of Reza Lavassani titled "Qaaf." This artistic event will open on Friday, June 13, 2025, and continue until July 10. This is Lavassani’s first solo exhibition with Dastan Gallery. His last solo exhibition, "Curtains," was held at Assar Gallery in 2018. During the third week of this exhibition, the book "Qaaf" (Tehran: Eskira, 2023) will be unveiled at the +2 venue.

The current exhibition consists of the artist’s two-dimensional works on cardboard, a bronze sculpture, and a functional wooden chair. By unfolding cardboard boxes, Lavassani creates the flat surface for his work in this series. Instead of painting, he perforates the surface with a sharp tool. The rows of delicate holes on the cardboard are not visible from a distance; the work can only be perceived up close. As Aran Ebrahimi Madiseh interprets, this collection "returns the viewer to the starting point of visual experience: seeing." This interplay of seeing and not seeing, aided by the delicate holes, evokes the sense of touch, reminiscent of the raised dots of Braille, thereby blurring the boundary between vision and touch. Consequently, from the duality of "seeing and not seeing" emerges a new pair which Madiseh calls "seeing and staying," because "the achievement of these works is not merely an aesthetic form but rather an interruption in the habitual perceptual system of the viewer." It is as if, to touch these works, seeing alone is not enough; the images whisper: "Do you wish to stay?" The motifs in this exhibition originate from Iranian visual traditions — from floral and bird patterns to abstract architectural forms. In this way, the acts of "seeing and not seeing" and "seeing and staying" not only provide a unique sensory experience for the audience but also carry a historical-cultural reading.

Reza Lavassani (b. 1962, Tehran, Iran) holds a B.A. in Painting from the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Tehran and works in various media including painting, sculpture, and design. In addition to his academic education, he has engaged in philosophical, historical, mythological, and sociological studies, and the reflection of these intellectual themes, alongside inspirations from ancient Iranian and Indian painting, is clearly visible in his works. Lavassani’s works have been exhibited in numerous galleries including Barg, Aria, Elaheh, Assar, and Mah. He has also participated in several art fairs and received multiple awards, including the Noma Tokyo competition prize. In 2019, Reza Lavassani represented Iran at the Venice Biennale with a large, detailed papier-mâché installation.