Iranian-born, UK-based artist and former Paralympian Mohammad Barrangi opens new exhibition

The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Friday, March 29, 2024


Iranian-born, UK-based artist and former Paralympian Mohammad Barrangi opens new exhibition
Born in Rasht, Iran, in 1988, Barrangi began drawing at the age of nine, and went on to study art. With a passion for storytelling, he transitioned into book illustration and graduated in Graphic Design.



WAKEFIELD .- The Art House is presenting Dreamland, the most ambitious and comprehensive solo exhibition by Iranian-born, UK-based artist and former Paralympian Mohammad Barrangi.

The project is a celebration of the artist’s working relationship with The Art House, and marks the first time the internationally acclaimed illustrator and printmaker has translated his evocative illustrations into sculpture, using pioneering sustainable, 3D-printed technology with the support of XPLOR, Production Park’s state-of-the-art research and innovation centre for entertainment technology and production, the first research centre of its kind in the world, based in Wakefield.

Born in Rasht, Iran, in 1988, Barrangi began drawing at the age of nine, and went on to study art. With a passion for storytelling, he transitioned into book illustration and graduated in Graphic Design.

The exhibition is a culmination of Barrangi’s relationship with The Art House, who were just announced as the main awardee of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation’s 2022 Award for Civic Arts Organisations, for its pioneering approach to working with communities, using the power of art for societal change.

After having to leave his homeland in 2017, Barrangi was placed in an initial accommodation centre in Wakefield. During this time, he was introduced to The Art House and welcomed into the Studio of Sanctuary residency programme, the first of its kind in the UK, which supports artists seeking sanctuary to re-establish their creative practice.

Barrangi’s work is deeply rooted in exploring the concepts of migration, and centres around the storytelling of travel and journeys. Inspired by Iranian mythological stories and contemporary social upheaval events, he has developed a signature style of bold imagery that combines elements of Persian calligraphy, old scientific illustration, and storytelling. His work centres on his lived experience of seeking asylum in the UK, and disability.

Born without the use of his left arm, Barrangi traditionally works on the floor and uses his feet to steady his work while printing. Reflecting his own experience with a disability, his works often show images of people with lost arms and legs, or with limb difference.

Barrangi has translated his evocative illustrations for the first time into sculpture, based on the fantastical world of mythical characters that feature in his prints, which also will be displayed. Central to The Art House gallery is Wonderland (2022), is a 2.5-metre-tall sculpture of a woman riding a stag, and Waiting for a Saviour (2022), Barrangi’s first mural to include a three-dimensional zebra-unicorn, his fantastical hybrid creature that extends out from the wall to blur the boundaries between imagination and reality.

This exciting shift into sculpture presented challenges that Barrangi was able to overcome by working with the team at XPLOR. The artist explains: “My work ultimately shapes me, my feelings and view of the community around me, so while every exhibition is different it comes from my own innermost feelings. Every exhibition I like to try new methods and new work. Of course, there is a risk, but for me it is a challenge.”

Using cutting-edge technology, the XPLOR team brought to life the artist’s characters, first as miniature figures, before producing full scale works. Printed in sections, the pieces were assembled into full scale sculptures and moved to The Art House where Barrangi began his unique technique of applying prints directly onto to surfaces he works with. He then embarks on the long process of rubbing away the top layer of fibres to reveal the images underneath.

The sculptures have been created using PLA plastic – a plant-based material which, unlike other plastics, is recyclable. The material is being researched by XPLOR to help find ways of making the creative sector more sustainable and reducing waste. XPLOR also enlisted the support of students from Backstage Academy, which offers specialist undergraduate and postgraduate degrees for the live events & creative industries, also based on campus at Production Park, to work on the project.

Barrangi has also created work directly in response to his feeling for The Art House and the support he felt he received during a difficult time in his life. His Blue Homes (2022) series, a collection of large-scale sculptural houses, are inspired by his reflection of The Art House as a welcoming safe space which offers a feeling of ‘home’ and a sanctuary for many people in Yorkshire. The title references Barrangi’s time in an immigration detention centre in 2018, when he was kept in a cell for 20 days, with the bright blue light shining on him all day and night.

The Art House was instrumental in successfully advocating for his release, preventing his deportation and even housing the artist on-site after his accommodation was revoked.

The artist says: “Wakefield and The Art House were a sense of comfort during that time, and helped in allowing me to rediscover myself and my artistic process. The Art House has always been a place of beginnings for me in the UK. The name ‘Art House’ feels more like ‘Art Home’ for me.”

Barrangi is just one of the many refugees or those seeking asylum in Wakefield, and the wider Yorkshire region, who has been supported by The Art House in its role as the UK’s first Studio of Sanctuary. Since 2017, they have worked with seven professional creative practitioners, many of whom are still supported by the organisation, and countless others who do not have a professional practice but are keen to explore the creative process.

Underlining all of their work is a commitment to supporting those seeking sanctuary to feel welcome in Yorkshire and to empowering diverse communities to find cohesion through shared artistic exploration.










Today's News

April 10, 2022

J.M.W. Turner: The Romantic turns Reformist

New MoMA PS1 director leans into social justice and reaches out to Long Island City

Rare Chinese vase created for the Qianlong Emperor discovered in a kitchen in England

Sweeping Basquiat show curated by his sisters offers intimate look at the artist

Alice Neel's exclusive West Coast presentation comes to the de Young Museum

Betty White's collection of scripts, furniture, jewelry, personal items and wardrobe to Shine at Julien's Auctions

Exhibition of new work by Jordan Nassar opens at James Cohan

Maradona's "The Hand of God" football shirt to be offered at auction with £4 million estimate

The Guggenheim Bilbao opens 'Motion: Autos, Art, Architecture'

Phillips announces highlights from the April Editions Auction

AstaGuru celebrates the 'Month of Masters' this April as a tribute to Indian modernists

India's rich textile heritage and enduring influence on global design is celebrated in new exhibition

Exhibition coincides with UN celebration of the International Year of Glass

NGV International opens 'Transforming Worlds: Change and Tradition in Contemporary India'

Using film to tell a personal history of America and race

Eleanor Munro, who profiled women artists, dies at 94

In Mariupol's drama theater, a cry for 'Mama!' That offered brief relief

New book from Daylight showcases the passion of incarcerated artists

Ke Huy Quan: From short round to romantic lead in just four long decades

Contemporary art in greater demand than ever: Buyers seek quality from all price ranges

OSL Contemporary opens Emily Gernild 'SOIL' curated by Milena Høgsberg

Artcurial to offer pieces from the collection belonging to Isabelle and Hervé Poulain

'Articulating Activism: Works from the Shelley and Donald Rubin Private Collection' on view at The 8th Floor

The Approach opens the UK debut solo exhibition of paintings by Pam Evelyn

Iranian-born, UK-based artist and former Paralympian Mohammad Barrangi opens new exhibition

Best Marketing Tools for Beauty Brands in 2022

How to Travel Safely While Touring European Art Galleries

Three ways brands can increase their Instagram engagement 2022




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez

sa gaming free credit
Attorneys
Truck Accident Attorneys
Accident Attorneys

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site Parroquia Natividad del Señor
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful