Alireza Jahani - Black doesn't mean Obscurity

"Strangulate"

   Since when you start to paint and how you discover your calling for painting?

I began painting from childhood and painting was always considered a part of my life but after finishing college and with a backpack full of  feel savings, I go into a community that I had no place to supply my works and forced into silence.

Here again I found that the only way out of silence is painting for me. After a series of paintings influenced by personal beliefs with the introduction  of one family members I met with my professors Nosratollah Moslemyan and since the beginning  of this acquaintance delivered me from the trap of self-imposed and hand over from my just ideological paintings slowly and teached me with his recommendations that how to show my emotions with art.

"Prisoner"

How do you choose your themes? What is your favourite theme? What inspire you?

Sometimes I only just living for weeks but I try to have impressive and deep conception from events surrounding me. Sometimes just a conversation in a French film is an idea for me to painting. My favorite subject as all know is woman and the whole humanity and its bottlenecks and capacities.

One women"

"Oblong"

What are the symbols of your work? What would you try to transmit to the public through your paintings?

My work symbols are mostly women and men in pain from my homeland Iran. Sometime my symbol is a young girl sometime a crazy woman, sometime a dead man on the cold soil or a girl with great expectations but with regret in her soul. My symbols are the women that following to freedom. It’s the woman who pulled wronged but still growing like a phoenix from ashes.

"Trance"

Why do you use so much black?

Black color to me is symptoms of frustration, oppression and suffering inside from a super closed society where that head down to oppression known as a value to the system. In my work black known as infestation, bad to the humanity, whatever even in black exist light.

"Culmination"

"Vicious circle"

What are the constraints of an artist from your point of view?

Note that I am among the general population and in connection with the lower classes of my society and I felt the pain of this grade category with all my person. Woman for me is a symbol of stood up and rebellion and not only as a symbol of sense, but as a semi-lost exist in community that surely the subtlety and reflection and standing.

"Thought"

In my opinion and according to my taught, the value and validity of a painting is to express inner feelings of the artist and experienced of his life.

"Asphyxia"

The artist can provide an accurate comparison between self and society to achieve, only thinking about art free of any limitations and restrictions governing and taste of society.

"The living soil"

What does an artist need to become famous? Is it enough talent?

In the history of art many talents was not recognized in their lifetime. But I have to follow the art without any despair and with my tendency to humanity and biological experienced. Always I am looking for contact with art world and from my experience using it to present my work and performance to the world.

Short biography:

I was born in 1980 in the port city of Anzali. I was first child of my family and from childhood my mother with books, crayons and drawing papers helped me a lot. She played a big role in my tendency to booking and painting from early ages. From my childhood, like most of my generation, I have memories of the war and those situations. In school time I was a smart student and I had always high marks although the lesson for me even in college time was of secondary importance after, my books. I success in my education and I was accepted in civil engineering at the university and graduated after 5 years. Studies continued on my country's political past and I was wavering between political activity or expression with my art but by thinking I chose art for the expression of mine and found my salvation way in art. I had all my past that followed and unknown way to future but a chance to introduction with my stand Mr. Nosratollah Moslemyan caused to understanding not only modern painting but also the modern thinking and getting rid of outdated traditions trap. I can honestly say that I was born again.