The occasion of the tenth anniversary of the Ab-Anbar Gallery, which started its activities in Tehran in 2014, marks the beginning of a new phase for the project. The opening of the exhibition space in London s Fitzrovia, featuring the exhibition Uncharted Echoes, curated by Bartomeu Mari, signifies a fresh start.
By Susan Acret | Tehran, 26 October 2015
Bahar Samadi, still from film
101, 2012, 3’ 34’’, black & white found footage, DV PAL 4:3. Courtesy the artist.
With the recent nuclear rapprochement, Iran is on the brink of the end of sanctions. This, along with new-found freedoms that arrived with the government of Hassan Rouhani in 2013, has fostered a sense of optimism. It seems a fortuitous time to visit and I am keen to see how the city’s artists are depicting this shift. Our trip has been organised by the Hong Kong-based Asia Art Archive and is the 2015 instalment of their yearly Collectors Circle trip. The Archive and London-based Iranian independent curator Leyla Fakhr have arranged the itinerary.