A review on Maysha Mohamedi's artworks

Maysha Mohamedi, an Iranian artist based in Los Angeles, has unveiled a new collection titled "Silent Counselor" at Berlin Gallery Weekend, in collaboration with Pace Gallery. This marks her second collaboration with Pace Gallery, following her solo show "Game Breaker" in New York last year.

The "Silent Counselor" exhibition features nine previously unseen works by Mohamedi. It ran from April 27 to June 26, 2024  at Pace Gallery in Berlin. Mohamedi's art delves into the fundamental relationships between color, form, language, matter, and existence, expressed through abstract paintings.

For Maysha Mohamedi, form is not merely a finished product but a dynamic outcome of the creative process. Her works captivate viewers with the interplay of line and color, which evolves into unique forms. While the forms in her paintings may initially seem repetitive, closer observation reveals that each is distinct.

Having studied cognitive sciences, Mohamedi often explores the intersection of art and science. In an interview with Sebastian Baden, director of Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt, she compared art to a mirror reflecting everyday experiences and the infinite questions of science.

Color, line, and form are central elements in Mohamedi's work. Her color palettes are inspired by specific images, such as colored rocks on a beach, magazine pages, a dining table, or even a half-burnt candle from her son's birthday. For Mohamedi, color serves as a tool to evoke emotion and harmony. Rather than focusing on the subject matter of these scenes, she draws inspiration from their "color combinations" to guide her creative process.

Mohamedi's precise use of color brings a sense of balance to her works, blending discrete and asymmetrical elements. Her approach to painting is largely intuitive: she begins by sketching the largest forms and allows the composition to unfold unconsciously. While her imagery may be rooted in reality, the final product is shaped by her imagination.

Interestingly, Mohamedi describes a paradoxical relationship with her art. Although her paintings emerge from her inner world, she aims to empty her mind of conscious thought while creating them. As she explains, "I disappear when I paint, and the result is an image that is both mine and not mine." This duality reflects a connection to nature and humanity, aligning her artistic language with the legacy of abstract art, particularly that of Wassily Kandinsky. In her interview about the "Silent Counselor" exhibition, Mohamedi elaborates:

"Some image sources are universal. If you ask 50 people to draw a particular shape, there will be commonalities among their drawings—elements that evoke shared emotions or reactions. As I draw these forms every day, I uncover subtle aspects of how lines interact on a surface, expressing transcendental meanings. Lines and surfaces create distinct shapes, each uniquely activating the imagination."

Mohamedi's structured compositions also evoke a sense of discontinuity. Her paintings have been likened to the moon's surface, engraved with a history of countless celestial collisions over millennia. Her art tells the story of her gentle, sensual interactions with the canvas, transforming the act of painting into an act of "touching"  . These traces remain etched on the canvas, turning her works into a tactile narrative.

Cover and Slider Image:

• pacegallery.com