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Detail: Asia Society Museum has invited the artist Shiva Ahmadi to create a new work as part of its ongoing In Focus series. Ahmadi’s practice is informed by the tradition of miniature painting. Her jewel-like compositions feature allegorical narratives that serve as a critique of contemporary political conflicts and the abuses of power that accompany them. For this exhibition the artist will present Lotus, a new single-channel animation, commissioned by Asia Society and based on two traditional Buddhas from the Asia Society Museum Collection. This new work will be Ahmadi’s first significant animation to date and marks an important shift in her practice. The animation is based on the artist’s 2013 triptych painting Lotus. The artist appropriates the image of the Buddha as the representation of a wise, forgiving deity to illustrate the devolution of a pure and well-intentioned ruler into an irresponsible and corrupt despot under the influence of absolute power. Bombs, grenades, and other explosives evocative of the accessories of war slowly infiltrate the narrative, and serve as a metaphor for the volatile political atmosphere of our contemporary time. This narrative springs from the artist’s own experience of war, political corruption, and global instability, first encountered during her childhood in Iran in the 1970s and later as an adult in the 1990s.
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Phone No.: 212-288-6400 Fax: 212-517-8315 Contact Email: [email protected] Site URL: http://asiasociety.org/new-york/exhibitions/shiva-ahmadi-focus |
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