Lot 3454 - A211 PostWar & Contemporary - Thursday, 28. November 2024, 04.00 PM
GOLNAZ FATHI
(Tehran 1972–lives and works in Tehran)
Untitled. 2021.
Oil and acrylic on canvas.
Signed and dated lower centre: GOLNAZ FATHI 2021.
170 × 130 cm.
Provenance:
- Private collection, Switzerland, acquired at the above gallery in 2022.
Golnaz Fathi was born in the Iranian capital Tehran in 1972. After studying graphic design, she continued her studies in traditional Persian calligraphy, graduating with a diploma and receiving the title of best female calligrapher from the Iranian Calligraphy Society.
Her expressive artworks clearly reveal her artistic roots in Persian calligraphy and her affiliation with the Hurufiyya art movement. The term Hurufiyya comes from the Arabic word "huruf", which roughly translates as "letters". The term refers to an aesthetic movement that first emerged in the mid-twentieth century, primarily in Arabic-speaking countries. Artists in this group use their understanding of traditional Islamic calligraphy and combine it with contemporary art movements and, in some cases, with the ascetic-spiritual influences of Sufism. An important concern of this art movement is to find a visual language that can convey cultural elements in addition to pure aesthetics. Not least, this movement also evolved at a time when many Arabic-speaking countries were shaking off the structures of colonialism and renegotiating questions of their own national identity in the new independence.
In this sense, Fathi's works effortlessly transcend the boundaries between tradition and contemporary art: she combines the bold colours and formal language of Abstract Expressionism of the New York School with the pictorial elements of the modernist Hurufiyya movement of the Middle East. What emerge are powerful paintings that inspire viewers with their intense colours paired with dynamic forms.
Golnaz Fatih is currently exhibiting in Venice at the Museo Correr until mid-October 2024, concurrently with the 2024 Biennale.
Golnaz Fatih's works are already included in many major collections, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the British Museum in London, the Museum of Islamic Art in Malaysia and the Devi Art Foundation in New Delhi.
Her expressive artworks clearly reveal her artistic roots in Persian calligraphy and her affiliation with the Hurufiyya art movement. The term Hurufiyya comes from the Arabic word "huruf", which roughly translates as "letters". The term refers to an aesthetic movement that first emerged in the mid-twentieth century, primarily in Arabic-speaking countries. Artists in this group use their understanding of traditional Islamic calligraphy and combine it with contemporary art movements and, in some cases, with the ascetic-spiritual influences of Sufism. An important concern of this art movement is to find a visual language that can convey cultural elements in addition to pure aesthetics. Not least, this movement also evolved at a time when many Arabic-speaking countries were shaking off the structures of colonialism and renegotiating questions of their own national identity in the new independence.
In this sense, Fathi's works effortlessly transcend the boundaries between tradition and contemporary art: she combines the bold colours and formal language of Abstract Expressionism of the New York School with the pictorial elements of the modernist Hurufiyya movement of the Middle East. What emerge are powerful paintings that inspire viewers with their intense colours paired with dynamic forms.
Golnaz Fatih is currently exhibiting in Venice at the Museo Correr until mid-October 2024, concurrently with the 2024 Biennale.
Golnaz Fatih's works are already included in many major collections, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the British Museum in London, the Museum of Islamic Art in Malaysia and the Devi Art Foundation in New Delhi.
CHF 20 000 / 30 000 | (€ 20 620 / 30 930)