TEHRAN – Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati visited “Towards the Ineffable”, an exhibition of artworks by Fardieh Lashai (1944-2012) at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art on Friday.

Deputy Culture Minister for Artistic Affairs Ali Moradkhani, TMCA Director Majid Mollanoruzi, the two Italian and Iranian curators Germano Celant and Faryar Javaherian, and a number of Iranian and foreign artists also accompanied the minister during the visit, which was arranged a day prior to the opening day of the showcase, the TMCA announced in a press release on Saturday.

“Artworks by Lashai are comparable with works by many world-renowned artists. She created over 4000 works within the 68 years of her life, part of which are on display here,” the minister said.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mollanoruzi said, “The museum moves toward the contemporary artistic movements of Iran and this exhibit has been arranged to remember the name of this great Iranian artist.

“The main difference between this exhibit and previous ones is that two Iranian and Italian curators have collaborated in arranging the show, and I hope it can make us more familiar with the concept of curatorship in Iran,” he added.

Celant, who is also the Artistic Director of the Prada Foundation in Milan, in his brief words, expressed hope that the exhibit would pave the way for more collaboration.

“It was a wish for me to organize an exhibit like this along with a world-known curator in a Tehran museum, and I hereby express my thanks to the museum officials who helped make my wish come true,” Javaherian next said.

She added, “I hope this procedure continues and world curators can display works by Iranian artists at the museum.”

In addition, Catherine de Zegher, director of the Museum of Fine Arts Ghent in Belgium, and Venetia Porter, the Assistant Keeper in the Department of the Middle East at the British Museum, are scheduled to attend a one-day seminar at the museum due to be held today.

Art critics and historians Media Farzin, Marjan Tajeddini and the two curators will also discuss and review the exhibit at the seminar.

A collection of 130 works including paintings, glassworks, drawings and video arts have been put on display in the exhibit running until February 26 at the museum located on North.Kargar St., next to Laleh Park.

RM/YAW
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