: : : : : : : : NEGAR AHKAMI : : : : : : : :
Merging her Iranian influences of
electric color and rhythmic, framed, symbolist narratives with her
Western influences of pop, Orientalist, post-impressionist, and
medieval art—helps Negar Ahkami reconcile her fondness for Persian
culture with brutal events in Iran and the painful stereotypes of Iran
in American media to which she has been exposed. Negar’s unification of
these sources suggests a relationship, complicating prevalent American
(and art historical) notions of an isolated “Islamic World.” The
visual cacophony in her work echoes the distinct voice of first
generation American experience. Negar’s spontaneous process, whereby
imagery reveals itself to her from wet gesso and coffee stains, results
in a psychological, intuitive dialogue with Persian
painting. Negar Ahkami was born in the U.S. in 1971 to Iranian immigrant parents. She was raised in New Jersey, facing the now lost iconic view of the downtown-Manhattan skyline. From ages 10-21, Negar studied life drawing and painting at the Art Students League of NY, won first prize in local New Jersey art competitions, and exhibited her work at Columbia University as an undergraduate there. Negar participated in group shows in Paris and New York (including UNESCO, 2000; Center for Iranian Modern Arts, 1999). In September 2001, Negar resigned from her job as an in-house lawyer for The Museum of Modern Art to focus on her art fulltime. In 2003, she participated in the Jentel Artist Residency Program in Wyoming; group shows in Paris (15th Arondissement City Hall) and New York (The Williamsburg Art and Historical Center; Empire State College; and a benefit show at Gavin Brown’s Enterprise); and “Popular Culture in the Middle East,” a panel discussion at New York University.
Photo
of artist by Bethany Fancher, 2003
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