Aghavan Khosravi

In Arghavan Khosravi’s exhibition, cultural narratives and political commentary converge within the intricate layers of her mixed-media compositions. Employing multiple techniques, Khosravi integrates trompe l’oeil effects, elements from Persian miniatures like architectural forms and flattened perspectives, and diverse materials including threads and fabrics. Throughout the multi-panel works, she weaves Persian motifs with surreal iconography, capturing the tension between East and West, past and present. Her work intertwines religious and secular imagery with a dreamlike quality that pierces the veil between reality and fantasy. The contradictions inherent in her art provide a profound commentary on the dualities Khosravi navigated growing up in Iran, where she experienced freedom in private spaces while conforming to strict governmental morality laws in public. This personal history enriches her pieces, making them universally relevant.

“Our Hair as a Weapon” and The Bird both resonate deeply with the Zan, Zendegi, Azadi (Woman, Life, Freedom) movement, which gained international attention following the death of Mahsa Amini at the hands of Iran’s morality police. In response, women across Iran defiantly removed their hijabs in protest. These works transform human hair into arrows of resistance. The Bird further explores themes of contradiction, featuring both the symbol of a bird—an emblem of freedom, yet often caged—and delicate gold threads attached to a shackle ball, highlighting the tension between liberation and confinement.

The Black Box focuses on the lines between restraint and liberation through the striking juxtaposition of traditional Persian miniature aesthetics with modern symbolic elements. A central female figure, face obscured by a stark black box—a recurring motif in Khosravi's work—is bound by chains yet set against a backdrop of vibrant scenes from Iranian paintings, symbolizing the historical and ongoing struggles for female autonomy. This piece subtly interweaves broader socio-political upheavals into its narrative fabric.

At Her Fingertips, the work that the exhibition gains its title from, delves into the dynamics of visibility and suppression, utilizing imagery of black chains and golden keys. This artwork contrasts confinement with the potential for freedom, with the dangling key serving as a powerful metaphor for liberation. Both the juxtaposition of gold in the threads coming from her hands and light emanating from her fingers against predominately black tones and the barbed wire that as it branches out towards other parts of the canvas turns into the branches of blossoming trees underscores a thematic glimmer of hope amidst oppression. Khosravi’s adept use of mixed media here articulates a nuanced commentary on the complex pursuit of liberation and the layered experiences of constraint.

The exhibition navigates complex social narratives, blending the historical with the contemporary to highlight ongoing struggles for autonomy and identity. In the work's reflection of gender, power, and repression, Khosravi is able to foster a deeper understanding of the transformative role of cultural expression in both personal and political realms.