CAMA Gallery of Iranian Art announce opening of London gallery, 5th of April 2018 

CAMA Gallery London

19 Dacre Street, London, SW1H 0DJ

Opening Ceremony 6pm-10pm

Following the success of their space in Tehran, CAMA Gallery, the new international market leaders in Modern and Contemporary Iranian art, have announced the opening of their London gallery on the 5th of April with an inaugural exhibition of 19 Contemporary Iranian artists.

The exhibition, entitled “Sensation”, is dedicated to contemporary luminaries from Iran. Whilst the works of all the artists are vastly diverse in theme and style, ranging from hyper-realistic painting to calligraphy, each piece selected aims to stimulate the senses of the viewer. The 19 artists are Bita Vakili, Meghdad Lorpour, Behrang Samadzadegan, Mojtaba Tajik, Flora Feizbakshsh, Samira Alikhanzadeh, Azra Aghighi Bakhshayeshi, Saeid Ahmadzadeh, Morteza Pourhosseini, Elham Yazdanian, Babak Roshaninejad, Ali Nedaei, Tahereh Samadi Tari, Ojan Shirozhan, Mostafa Nourbakhsh, Fereydoon Omidi, Maryam Salour, Mohsen Jamalinik and Mohammad Tabatabai.

Notable artists include Bita Vakili, considered one of the most sought after young female artists in the Middle East. At only 40 she recently broke records at Christie’s Dubai when a piece estimated at 20,000 USD was sold for 45,000 USD at auction. Renowned sculptor, painter and ceramist Maryam Salour is also of interest as in addition to having had her own gallery and having been director of numerous art fairs in Iran, she has produced several programmes on Iranian artists for the BBC World Service. Morteza Pourhosseini has also been highly regarded for his work that criticises the current repressive treatment of women in Iran, and despite having never left Iran has had paintings bought by Sotheby’s London and The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Iran’s contemporary art market is outperforming that of any other Middle Eastern country.  Works by Iranian artists shone at Sotheby’s in 2017, grossing over 60% of the 2.7 million USD generated by the 20th Century Art: Middle East auction. In the spring 2017 sales, the combined results of Bonhams, Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Tehran Auction produced $11,912,150 in sales of Iranian artists; the next largest nationality was Egyptian with $2,585,657. Persian/Iranian art has one of the richest art heritages in world history, with a distinctive hold on various artistic disciplines including architecture, painting, weaving, pottery, calligraphy, metalworking and sculpture.

CAMA Gallery aims to be a leading force in the growth and expansion of the art industry in Iran and the Middle East and the only gallery in London to showcase exclusively Iranian art. CAMA presents all genres of Modern and Contemporary Iranian art in international exhibitions, online, and now their London gallery, and offers contemporary artists exposure and global recognition.

With over twenty years of experience in the Iranian art market as an art manager, curator, illustrator, editor and author, Mona Kosheghbal is CAMA’s female founder. Based in Iran, she has curated the exhibitions at the Tehran gallery, including the recently successful exhibition featuring contemporary female Iranian artist Tara Khoshenshin entitled The Pattern of the Imagination, and for the London opening has hand-picked an outstanding selection of contemporary artists to best introduce the UK to the work of Iranian artists.  Founder of the Naghayesh Artistic Group, Kosheghbal provides extensive connections to the Iranian art market, playing a crucial role in CAMA’s mission to cross cultural and artistic boundaries.

CAMA Gallery will open with a welcome reception on 5th of April 2018 from 6-10pm. Please RSVP to rsvp@damsonpr.com.

For more information please contact Anna Beketov, Damson PR on anna.beketov@damsonpr.com or +44 (0)20 7812 0645.

Artist Biographies:

Bita Vakili

Born in 1973 in Tehran, Bita Vakili has been painting for over 25 years, mostly working with mixed media on canvas. lnspired by images of nature, Vakili brings together paint and other mediums in this artistic practice and abandons them on the surface of canvas. In her recent work, she has moved away from nature and towards the abstraction of scent, space and corporal elements. She holds a bachelor’s degree in painting from the Faculty of Art at Azad University and a master’s degree from the Faculty of Art at Tehran University. Vakili has showcased her work at more than 70 group exhibitions in Iran, United Arab Emirates, Canada, USA, China, Monaco, France and more. Her sale at the 12th Christie’s Dubai auction made her one of the most expensive female artists in the Middle East.

Meghdad Lorpour

Born in 1983 in Shiraz, Iran, Meghdad Torpor holds a bachelor’s degree in painting from Shaded University, Tehran. He creates hyperrealist paintings often depicting natural landscapes and engaging with the representation of texture through line, light and soft-spoken palettes. He has held four solo exhibitions in Tehran, as well as numerous group exhibitions across Iran. He works mostly with acrylic on canvas.

Behrang Samadzadegan

Behrang Samadzadegan is an artist, critic and curator born in 1979 in Tehran, Iran. His works are versatile and range from symbol to historical paintings, to include sculpture and installation pieces. His works questions cultural and social identity through found sources, examining the legitimacy of normative values and systems of authority. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Painting from Iran Art University and a master’s degree in painting from Tabriat Modares University, Tehran. He has held several solo exhibitions in Tehran, and been part of many international group exhibitions, ranging from Armenia to the Philippines, from Greece to Chicago. He is a member of the Association of Iranian Painters and a digital visual editor for the Tehran Avenue magazine. Samadzadegan is also an arts teacher at various institutions, including Sooreh University of Tehran and the Tehran branch of TAFE programme of New South Wales University. Additionally, he has also published several critical essays in various newspapers, sites and journals, such as Bidoud and The Report.

Mojtaba Tajik

Born in 1966 in Tehran, Iran, Mojtaba Tajik is a self-taught artist, later trained by Iranian master painter Aydin Aghdashloo. His works are hyper-realist paintings, inspired by photographs used as sketches. He held his first solo exhibition in 1995 in Tehran’s prestigious Seyhoun Gallery. He has held several solo shows in Iran, USA and Qatar, as well as group shows worldwide. Tajik’s works have been regularly presented in international art fairs. A book was published on his collection of works in 2007 entitled: Boxes, available at Assar Art Gallery.  His works have also been included in a book by Lorena Kloosterboer entitled ‘Complete guide to painting in acrylic.’

Flora Feizbakshsh

Flora Feizbakshsh was born in 1958 in Babol, Iran. With over 15 years of experience working as a professional artist, she mostly uses acrylic on canvas. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Social Economy from the University of Tehran. She has held eight solo shows in Iran, and has been part of many group shows across the country. She is a member of the Iranian Painter’s Association.

Samira Alikhanzadeh

Born in 1967 in Tehran, Iran, Samira Alikhanzadeh creates confrontational portraits, often incorporating acrylic on printed board with mirror fragments. She holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Painting from Azad University, Tehran. She has held solo exhibitions in Tehran, Boston, Dubai and London. She has also been part of various international art fairs, including the 2015 Venice Biennale in Italy and the 2016 Kunst Zurich 16 in Switzerland.

Azra Aghighi Bakhshayeshi

Azra Aghighi Bakhshayeshi was born in 1968 in Qom, Iran, and is an award-winning calligraphist. She creates suggestive calligraphy compositions using acrylic on canvas. She has held solo shows across Iran and has been part of many international shows and fairs in Iran, Turkey, Lebanon, Kuwait, and beyond. In 2006, she won the first round of Sa’adi Prize in New Delhi, India. She is also a former calligraphy teacher at The Calligraphers Association of Iran and a former Art Advisor for the Women Affairs Department at the Kish Free Zone Organisation in Iran.

Saeid Ahmadzadeh

Born in 1981 in Tehran, Iran, Saeid Ahmadzadeh is a painter who creates bold representation artworks and portraits using acrylic on canvas. He holds a bachelor’s degree in painting from Azad University in Tehran and a master’s degree in painting from Tarbiat Modarres University in Tehran. He is the Dean of Visual Arts Department, and a Professor of Visual Arts at Azad University, Bouin-Zahra. In 2008, he was a selected artist in the 7th National Painting Biennal of Iranian Contemporary Art at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art. He has held several solo and group exhibitions across Iran.

Morteza Pourhosseini

Born in Ahwaz, Iran in 1985, Morteza Pourhosseini has been the recipient of numerous accolades and awards, and his paintings have sold at Sotheby’s London auction house and bought by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. A child of the revolution who has never left Iran, Pourhosseini’s artistic expressions courageously express the denigration of women in Iran today and capture the foundational precepts of a patriarchal order enshrined since the ascension of the Safavid Dynasty (1501-1722) and the declaration of Shi’ite Islam as the official state religion.

Elham Yazdanian

Born in 1979 in Tehran, Elham Yazdanian received her masters in painting from Tehran Art and Architecture University in 2005. Playing with light and shadows, her paintings feature figure less spaces and attempt to reveal consciousness concealed in the darkness of a space by an illuminating light. Her choice of medium in her paintings is acrylic while she uses a wide range of materials in her smaller scale drawings.  Since 2003, she has participated in numerous exhibitions and biennials. In addition to being part of several private collections, her works are kept in the collection of Imam Ali Museum in Tehran.

Babak Roshaninejad

Born in 1977 in Hamedan, Iran, Babak Roshaninejad has been inspired and influenced by social philosophy and the global language of visual arts. A self-taught painter, he uses painting not only to express his views on culture and in particular the social effects of visual culture, but to also emphasis on the power of art as an expressive tool in creating cross cultural dialogue. Known for his large and limited colour canvases, Roshaninejad is particularly concerned and pays special attention to form, composition and the aesthetics of his paintings. Roshaninejad lives and works in Tehran. As well as being part of some prominent private collections, his work is in the permanent collection of The Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art. His art has been exposed in a number of art fairs and has been the subject of several exhibitions worldwide. He has also published several books of fiction and aphorism.

Ali Nedaei

Ali Nedaei was born in 1957 in Abadan. Mostly working with acrylic on canvas, he paints in various styles, ranging from bold figurative representations to more symbolic variations. He is among the most influential realist painters in Iran. He has obtained a master’s degree in painting from Tehran Art University. He is a member of the society of Iranian painting and has held solo shows in Iran and Turkey, as well as group shows across the globe, including Italy, Japan, Armenia and France.

Tahereh Samadi Tari

Born in 1981 in Tehran, Iran, Tahereh Samadi Tari is a painter who mostly works with acrylic on canvas. She creates hyperrealist, even futuristic paintings, often depicting solitary figures in ambitious urban settings. Influenced by photography and even cinematography, her canvasses exhibit a concern with geometric abstraction and spatiality. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Painting, Art & Architecture from Azad University and a master’s degree from the Tehran Art University. She has held several solo and group exhibitions in Tehran, as well many several international group exhibitions in Qatar, USA, and London. Tahereh Samadi Tari is the only Iranian artist who has participated in Volta Art fair New York.

Ojan Shirozhan

Born in 1977 in Iran, Ojan Shirozhan is a painter who mostly works with oil on canvas. Shirozhan creates painterly portraits, denoted by a suggestive use of shading, a warm palette and a dreamlike aura. He learned painting from Iranian masters Mehdi Marzban and Babak Etminani and later obtained a master’s degree in Art, Theatre and Fine Arts in the Republic of Maldova. He has participated in more than 40 individual and group exhibitions, within and outside Iran.

Mostafa Nourbakhsh

Mostafa Nourbakhsh was born in 1968 in Shahr-e Kord, Iran. He is a painter who prefers mixed media on canvas. Often working with a dark palette, he creates abstract calligraphy designs. Highly introspective, they explore forms of interiority through moment, shape and shading. He has held several solo shows and group exhibitions in Iran. He has also won first place ‘for the modern trend of calligraphy’ in the Second Festival of Art Centre Works and Productions in Tehran in 2008.

Fereydoon Omidi

Born in 1967 in Roudbar, Iran, Fereydoon Omidi is a calligraphist who mostly works with acrylic on canvas to creative striking calligraphy designs. He is concerned with speed and rhythm, and his work exhibits a desire to confront and reshape traditional calligraphy techniques through a contemporary and often shocking approach. He holds a master’s degree in painting from Azad University and has since held more than 23 solo exhibitions in Iran, Dubai, Paris, London, Venice, among other places. He has hold held various group exhibitions both within Iran and beyond. He also teaches art at Azad University.

Maryam Salour

Born in Tehran in 1954, Maryam Salour is a sculptor, painter and ceramist, with an in-depth knowledge of Iranian contemporary art and a varied portfolio, ranging from bold mixed media paintings to abstracted ceramic sculptures. Although she began studying computer science and informatics in London and Paris, she discovered painting at the Savini Sculpture and Painting School of Paris. She opened her own gallery in 1987, where she held her first solo show. She has since been the director of the Eighth Biennial of Art of Poetry and Ceramic and Contemporary Glassware of Iran, and has prepared eight programmes for BBC world service, including 2 on young blind Iranian painters.

Mohsen Jamalinik

Born in 1979, Iranian Mohsen Jamalinik graduated in Jahad Daneshgahi University in 2005. He primarily works with acrylic on canvas, working with a pastel palette. He has been one of the Member of “Iranian Institute of Visual Arts” since 2006, and currently lives and works in Karaj. Jamalinik has been very active in Tehran. In 2007, he had his first solo exhibition at the Homa Gallery. His works were also displayed in the Sa’d Abad Palace Museum in 2008. After a few years, Jamalinik’s works appeared in China, France and England. In 2014, he was one of the artists in a group show at Nicolas Flamel Gallery in Paris. He is the youngest Iranian artist to be selected for the Beijing International Art Biennale.

Mohammad Tabatabai

Born in 1987 in Tehran, Iran, Mohammad Tabatabai holds a bachelor’s degree from Tehran University of Art. Through ghostly figures and ominous abstracted landscapes, he explores the intersection between stillness and silence, the sacred and the secular. He has held several solo and group exhibitions across Tehran. He has also won first prize in photography at Tehran’s School of Fine Arts and third prize in painting at Iran’s School of Fine Arts.