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Carpets of Eden Behrang Samadzadegan’s latest curation at Leila Heller Gallery
Dubai uses traditional materials to weave a contemporary narrative. Aisha Zaman reports
After rising to prominence since its establishment in New York over four decades ago, Leila Heller Gallery has gained worldwide recognition as a pioneer in promoting a creative dialogue and exchange between Western artists and Middle Eastern, Central and Southeast Asian artists. Currently on show is the group exhibition ‘Carpets of Eden, Gardens of Fantasy’, curated by Behrang Samadzadegan, exploring how carpets since time immemorial have been integral to the fabric of human existence, serving as a vessel for cultural storytelling. The exhibition showcases a collection of intricately crafted carpets,
positioned as dynamic canvases of expression by artists who have given a new lease of life to this age-old art form.
The viewer is invited to explore the ethereal realms of a journey through fantastical gardens, where fibres dream and artists share their philosophies by unleashing their creativity. Each weave unveils a narrative and every thread comes together to create a rich tapestry of transcendence. As each piece captivates the senses and ignites the imagination, the installation is a testament to the amazing potential found in often-overlooked objects in our daily lives. The carpets emerge not just as functional objects but also as masterpieces of craftsmanship.
Samadzadegan was born in Iran. In his works, he is renowned for exploring the possibility (or impossibility) of representing truth, identity and history within the framework of aesthetic laws, and to challenge artworks’ capacity for displaying these concepts. In an exclusive interview he tells COVER, ‘I believe every aesthetic approach and artistic expression is rooted in the human perception of beauty, imagination and fantasy. It’s not just about the physical elements like form, colour and composition, but also about how these visual elements can convey human ideas, narratives and philosophy.’