Kamran Samimi: In Stillness
This exhibition by Shangri La artist-in-residence, Kamran Samimi, explores instances of change, transformation, and the passage of time.
In Stillness Exhibition (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
“Change fascinates me because I constantly struggle with it. By immersing myself in, studying, recreating, and even paying tribute to it, I respond to my place in a universe shaped by change.” – Kamran Samimi
In Stillness Exhibition (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
This exhibition explores instances of change through artistic visualizations that highlight transitions from one state to another. The work activates liminal spaces and pays tribute to what may be imperceptible during processes of transformation.
In Stillness Exhibition (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
Through the careful manipulation of line, form, object, and light, a silent dynamic reverberates through the space, emphasizing how spatial intervals are opportunities for contemplation and reflection: What may happen in and during apparent emptiness?
In Stillness Exhibition (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
The artist explores how in-between spaces are full of meaning, expanses of hidden possibility, and moments to see connections between things; in sum, to coax materiality from the unseen is an activity of spiritual practice.
Continuum I (2020) by Karman SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
Each stroke of ink is a transition between presence and absence, a journey of brushstrokes, and an exercise in continually embracing and letting go of each moment.
Continuum II (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
As a thought arises in the mind, is considered, and is then released, each stroke is a meditation synchronized with a single breath. The overall pattern repeats, vibrating and reverberating: a visual expression of prayer.
Continuum III (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
This meditation on transition presents a non-dualistic approach: emphasizing neither black nor white, but rather the transition between the two.
Continuum IV (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
As a metaphor for the way we move through life, this body of work embraces and celebrates the fleeting nature of existence with an interconnected past, present, and future. Each canvas carries marks of this experience with reflection and memory.
Emanation (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
This artwork is a silent confrontation on several levels: between the artist and the idea, the idea and the materials, and the artwork and the viewer.
Emanation (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
The installation reverberates at a slow tempo, effecting a pulse of energy from an unseen, central source.
Emanation (detail) (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
Strata of washi paper are assembled in a layered progression. By physically manipulating the material, the liminal space within and around the piece is activated.
Emanation (detail) (2020) by Kamran SamimiShangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design
Reminiscent of layers of clouds, waves of water, or currents of air, the overall experience is otherworldly, ethereal, intangible, and devotional.
Shangri La is a museum for learning about the global culture of Islamic art and design through exhibitions, digital and educational initiatives, public tours and programs, and community partnerships.
Kamran Samimi: In Stillness will be on view from
October 1, 2020 - August 15, 2021 at the Honolulu Museum of Art, Arts of the Islamic World Gallery.
Kamran Samimi grew up in rural Laupāhoehoe on Hawai‘i Island, with an Iranian/Scandinavian background. Since 2008, his work has been shown extensively around Hawai‘i, the continental US, Australia, and Japan. He holds a BFA in printmaking and an MFA in sculpture and print media from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
Kamran Samimi is Shangri La’s first Hawaiʻi-based Artist-in-Residence. For more information visit us at : http://www.shangrilahawaii.org/
