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IRAN

Alireza Memariani

“I’m a visual artist and documentarist living in Hormoz, working primarily in digital photography and art installation. I received my MA from University of Art & Architecture, Tehran in 2009. I’ve built Artist Residency Daheer in Hormoz island, Iran, where I improvise engagements with art audiences, musicians, and local people.“

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Multidisciplinary Artist

ARTIST BIOGRAPHY

My artistic approach is grounded in visual art and documentary practices, with a primary focus on digital photography and art installation. Over the years, I have prepared various exhibitions and presented my works in diverse settings. Additionally, I made a documentary film, which was screened at a festival in Tehran, and received the Special Jury Prize in 2022. I currently reside on Hormoz Island in Persian Gulf, where I have established the Artist Residency Daheer, a unique space for creativity and cultural exchange. Here, I collaborate with local artists, musicians, and community members to create projects that explore the intersection of art and everyday life. My first project on Hormoz Island, called “Red Dream” and “Real Imagination,” utilized stage photography to capture the abstract emotions of workers in an old red clay mine and factory. A 50-year-old red clay factory produced red powder for the paint and cosmetics industry and most of the products were exported to Italy and FranceThe goal was to convey the abstract feelings of the workers through visual storytelling, with the themes of hope, love, and patience at the forefront. My second project, “Cemetery,” involved working alongside impoverished locals to dry surplus fish in the desert heat, which taught me the importance of embodying the life of a fish-dryer to achieve true artistic originality. For approximately six months, I laboured with them in their difficult working conditions, amidst the hot and unsanitary environment filled with flies. For many days, I sifted through the remains of the beautiful fish, seeking beauty amidst the stench of decaying corpses. My workshop became a haven for the dead and dried fish, but arranging these works became meditative for me, allowing me to blend reality with fantasy by incorporating human figures among the fish. My next project, “Public Mourning,” was inspired by the mass death of antelopes on the island and the resulting changes in the landscape. I created symbolic sculptures of metal mummies representing the deer. I realized that my project was not only related to the environment but also connected to religious beliefs. To me, the death of a deer symbolized the loss of innocence. I shrouded my characters, a real shroud with religious prayers. In that year, I thought that death had invaded our land. In the end, I also made a documentary film about the process of this project called “Broken Bones.” A film about a local man who heals the broken bones of human as well as animals, and unlike all the people of the island has come to the fact that the death of antelopes is actually the death of the island and its people. After working on several other photography projects, I decided to build a cultural house on the island called Daheer, named after an ancient mythical fish found in the Persian Gulf. This project was a challenging but ultimately rewarding endeavour that has now become a significant location for artists and cultural exchange on the island.
EXHIBITIONS/FILMS
- 2022 Broken Bones, The 64 minutes Documentary Film, Tehran, Iran
- 2018 Public Mourning, Photography and Sculpture Project, Etemad Gallery, Tehran, Iran
- 2016 Cemetery, Photography, Etemad Gallery, Tehran, Iran
- 2015 Real Imagination, Photography, No.6 Gallery, Tehran, Iran
- 2014 Red Dream, Photography, Bidbon Gallery, Shiraz, Iran
- 2010 Kite Runner, Photography, Prague Cafe Gallery, Tehran, Iran
OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS
- 2023 Within a Hair’s Breadth (Jun 15 - Sep 10), Iranian Contemporary Photography, Strasbourg, France
- 2023 A Selection of Photography (Oct 27-29), Festival Sinema, LACabane, Murten, Switzerland.
- 2023 In Commemoration of L’imaginaire, A look at Staged Photography in Iran (Nov 17-24), Yafteh Gallery, Tehran, Iran
- 2023 Mimesis (May 22 - Jun 29), International Collective Exhibition of Video, Photography and Digital Graphics, LoosenArt Gallery, Millepiani, Rome, Italy
- 2023 L’age D’or (May 5-7), Surrealistic Group Exhibition, Crypt Gallery, London, England 2023
- 2023 Birthing (Apr 28 - May 23), Group Exhibition, Etemad Gallery, Tehran, Iran
- 2022 Videoformes (Mar 18-21), Digital Arts Festival, Clremont- Ferrand, France
- 2022 Manipulated Genes, the Iranian New Media Artist in Europe, Galleria Weber, Turin, Italy
- 2022 Broken Bones (The 64 minutes Documentary Film), Special Jury Prize in The International Section of the 15th Cinema-Truth Film Festival, Tehran, Iran
- 2020 99 Photography (Jun 19 - Jul 19), Group Photography Exhibition, Tehran Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran
- 2019 Portrait, Group Exhibition, Interphotofrance Project, Lesneven, Franc
- 2019 Staged (Nov 11 - Dec 14), International Group Exhibition, Ph21 Gallery, Budapest, Hungary
- 2019 Love Is a Rebellious Bird (2019 Nov 5 - 2020 Feb 7), Group Exhibition, Mantra Wine Gallery, Novato, Cal, USA 2019
- 2019 7th Art Festival for Peace (Sep 20 - Oct 4), Art photography, Baroque Gallery, Tehran, Iran
- 2018 The Second Mine Festival, Selected Photographer, Iranian Artists Forum, Tehran, Iran
- 2018 Group Art Exhibition (Oct 5-10), Negar Gallery, Tehran, Iran
- 2018 Group Art Exhibition (Aug 10 - Sep 11), Etemad Gallery, Tehran, Iran
- 2017 The First Mine Festival, Award Winner Photographer, Iranian Artists Forum, Tehran, Iran
- 2015 “Ten Days with Photographers” Festival, Iranian Artists Forum, Tehran, Iran
- 2014 “Hormozgan Photography” Festival, the Best Photographer
- 2012 Balochi Music, the Documentary about Balochi Folklore Musician “Shir Mohammad Espandar”
- 2012 Instance, the Short Film with the theme of Photography, Tehran’s Independent Film Festival
AWARDS
2022 - Special Jury Prize in the International Section of the 15th Cinema-Truth Film Festival for the documentary “Broken Bones”
2018 - Selected photographer in second mine festival, Iranian Artists Forum, Tehran, Iran
2017 - Award winner photographer in first mine festival, Iranian Artists Forum, Tehran, Iran
2014 - Selected as the Best Photographer in Hormozgan Photography Festival

Artworks

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