+2 concurrent with Dastan's Basement commences the Persian New Year 1401 with
Fereydoun Ave's "Recent Works in Times of Quarantine". The show opens April 8, 2022 and
shall be on view until May 6, 2022. 37 works on canvas opens a window to Fereydoun Ave's
world and his relationship with his surroundings. This is the artist's 14th solo exhibition with
+2 and Dastan's Basement..
"Air 22" uses colorful chalk-pastels against a dark surface. Forms and shapes erupt as if
a light switch has been throw. The artist's 2021 series depict trees and surface water.
Could it be that our increasing isolation from natural settings, indeed the biphobia that
has set in, with the fear of a threatening outside world, is one reason for bringing
elements of nature home? Trees are depicted with a longing for their company. There is
thirst in the flowing waters in these works. With these two series, Fereydoun Ave is
returning to the primordial elements – fire, water, air, earth – a subject that he has come
back to often in his works. It is a way for the artist to evaluate his relationship with the
world he currently lives in.
Fereydoun Ave (b. 1945, Tehran, Iran) has been an inextricable part of the Iranian art scene
for the past 5 decades. His work is characterized by experimentations with different media
to grapple with urgent subjective preoccupations. His artworks have been featured in
many solo exhibitions along with hundreds of group shows in galleries and museums
around the world. Other than many notable private collectors, Ave’s works have been
acquired by prestigious art institutions