TEHRAN – The two-volume pictorial book, “The Sea Suspended”, for an exhibition of works by modern Iranian and Arab artists underway at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art (TMCA), has been published.

 The books were introduced during a ceremony held at the museum on Tuesday attended by a large number of artists and officials including Deputy Culture Minister for Artistic Affairs Ali Moradkhani, TMCA director Majid Mollanoruzi and Karim Sultan, the Curator of the exhibit.

Forty works by Arab artists loaned by the Barjeel Art Foundation in the United Arab Emirates, in addition to forty artworks by Iranian artists selected from the treasure trove of TMCA, have been put on display in the exhibit until Friday.

Moradkhani regarded the exhibit a positive event and said, “I am happy the artistic activities are carried out by the private sector, which help organize good programs.”

He also said that the TMCA enjoys a good status and hoped the obstacles would be removed so that the museum would find a better and higher position.

Mollanoruzi also on his part said that one of the responsibilities of the museum is to showcase world artistic movements.

“This is the first time Since the establishment of the museum that it has hosted an exhibition of Arab artists, and this was a good chance for more dialogue and comparative discussions between Iranian and Arab artists,” he said.

“We cannot claim that all the modern Arab art has been displayed in this exhibit, but part of the major modern Arab artistic movement has been showcased,” he remarked.

Karim Sultan expressed thanks to the TMCA director and said that the exhibit shows the dialogue about the art of the region and has drawn the attention of the media.

The artists reflect the world like a mirror and this happens even in the most abstract form, he added.

The exhibit, which opened on November 9, will close on December 30.  

Photo: Deputy Culture Minister for Artistic Affairs Ali Moradkhani unveils a poster for the book “The Sea Suspended” at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art on December 28, 2016. (Honaronline/Saeid Rabiei)

RM/YAW