Statement:

Transmitter is thrilled to present Familiar Like Skin, an exhibition of new works by New York-based artists Anahita Bagheri and Bayan Kiwan, curated by co-directors Sara Meghdari and Lila Nazemian. The show brings together sculptures by Bagheri and paintings by Kiwan that evoke somatic features and intimate experiences.///

Bagheri’s papier-mâché sculptures mimic the characteristics of living bodies through their curving forms and skin-like paper surfaces. Kiwan depicts intimate scenes of women in superimposed fragmented environments, reflecting instances of soft camaraderie and subtle possibilities of resistance. 

In her work, Bagheri is inspired by traditional crafts found throughout Iranian art and architecture, namely the Islimi Khataei ornamentation as well as the craft tradition of painted and lacquered boxes. Consisting of decorative floral patterns, Islimi Khataei motifs were used to frame the pages of illustrated manuscripts, both figurative and script, as well as to adorn historical architecture from Iran and the surrounding region. The craft of painting and lacquering pen boxes, trays, and cases dates back to the 16th-century Safavid era.

Bagheri’s references, however, go beyond the decorative. By bringing the work into a 3-dimensional space, she imbues these patterns with a physical body. These sculptures evoke a range of bodily forms, from the sensuality of the curves to the decomposition of the surface.

The medium of paper is yet another layer of the work, both referencing the origins of the patterns and possessing the attributes of skin. Paper, much like skin, thins over time, wilts in humidity, and changes under exposure to light and other substances. While maintaining the primary elements of the referenced craft traditions, Bagheri reverses the miniature, two-dimensional scale, by transforming highly-contained painted adornment into life-size three-dimensional forms. 

Kiwan’s vivid paintings illustrate encounters between women in an ephemeral state of eutopic camaraderie. She identifies and then juxtaposes interactions from unstaged personal photographs to reveal intimate yet mundane scenes of feminine domestic interiors. In these spaces, women are able to exist at their full potential; at ease, and away from socio-political confines and expectations. The viewer, however, is not clued into the relationships between the figures; and must engage in careful observation of what is familiar from a fresh perspective.

The fragmentation of whimsical compositions alludes to present and future possibilities, and represents Kiwan’s ongoing formal exploration of the inscrutable. The artist explains, “painting is not just about translating what’s familiar but also seeing it differently, animating it and dreaming it otherwise. It makes the better future nearer, finding glimpses of it in what already exists.” In her practice, Kiwan is furthermore interested in the power and capacity of resistance that takes place within the private sphere, which is equally important to more commonly recognized public modes of resistance.