The latest iteration of Carnegie Museum of Art’s online exhibition series features Reign of Winter, a silent, animated video work by Rokni Haerizadeh (Iranian, b. 1978). The film was initially exhibited as part of the 2013 Carnegie International. The film follows the 2011 wedding procession of Kate Middleton and Prince William from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace; however, the live-action components of the footage have been replaced with fantastical forms and anthropomorphic figures. Haerizadeh painted over still images of broadcast coverage, creating a dynamic stop-motion animation film that invites viewers to consider how mass media influences our perceptions and interpretations of current events, traditions, and empire. His reworked compositions, which he refers to as “moving paintings,” turn the pristine, formal celebration into a surreal event that features a bathtub taking the place of a carriage and a congregation full of animals. Although Reign of Winter was created during 2012 and 2013, the work still speaks to the role of the artist in critiquing the highly choreographed rituals that command media attention today./// Rokni Haerizadeh: Reign of Winter is organized by Kiki Teshome, the Margaret Powell Curatorial Fellow at Carnegie Museum of Art. About the Artist Rokni Haerizadeh was born in Tehran in 1978 and currently lives and works in Dubai. His paintings and stop-motion animation films satirize social and public gatherings—particularly weddings, religious festivals, funerals and banquets—to reveal the absurdities embedded in tradition and ritual. Haerizadeh received his BA in fine arts and his MA in painting from the University of Tehran. His works are held in public and private collections including the Guggenheim, New York; Carnegie Museum of Art; the British Museum; Tate Modern; the Frye Art Museum, Seattle; and the JPMorgan Chase Art Collection. Haerizadeh maintains a collaborative practice with Ramin Haerizadeh and Hesam Rahmanian, and together they have staged exhibitions internationally.

ABOUT THE ONLINE EXHIBITION SERIES Carnegie Museum of Art’s online exhibition series draws from the museum’s vast film and video collection and is an extension of the museum’s curatorial program in the digital sphere. The online exhibition series offers a new channel for local and global audiences alike to experience time-based works previously only accessible in-person. With this initiative, Carnegie Museum of Art is revolutionizing how visitors can engage with its significant holdings at a time when many cultural institutions are closed due to the coronavirus pandemic./// ABOUT FILM AND VIDEO AT CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF ART The Department of Film and Video was among the first of its kind when it opened in 1970 as a three-year venture led by Sally Dixon, eventually growing into a full-fledged department that garnered national and international attention. In its first twenty years, the department worked with more than 150 artists including Stan Brakhage, Robert Breer, Joan Jonas, Carolee Schneemann, Hollis Frampton, Roger Jacoby, Bruce Conner, and Yvonne Rainer. The department was incorporated into the museum’s Department of Modern and Contemporary Art in 2003, including its significant collection of nearly 1,000 film and video works.