New Concepts in Sculpture

Sculptor and architect Ali Kourechian, 43, has set up a solo sculpture exhibition titled ‘For Your Eyes Only’ (in Persian ‘Be Bahaneye Cheshmanat’) in Tehran.

The exhibit opened January 13 and will run through January 25 at Saless Art Gallery, located at No. 148 on Karim Khan Blvd, Honaronline reported.

The sculptures are a series of masks featuring Persian calligraphy, but “calligraphy is not the only medium I’ve used. Based on my ideas, I’ve tried to introduce a new concept,” Kourechian said.

“I created the sculptures with a three-dimensional calligraphy script. I used a poem by Hafez (1326-1390) as the basis of the works.”

The poem, as translated by US-based poet and translator Elizabeth T. Gray into English says, “The dust of my body veils the face of my soul, happy the moment I can pull the veil from that face.”  

Kourechian elaborates on the concept: “I tried to convey the meaning with a combination of visual forms and the three-dimensional script. As a sculptor, I used calligraphy and brought it into a new dimension. Iron is my tool and with it I wrote the script.”

In the pivotal poem, Hafez finds passion and enthusiasm to approach god. “In many places across the world, such passion is symbolized by the tiger. So I created a tiger covered in a veil that comprises the body of the animal.”