Iran's New Treasures
December 22, 2009 Back to News
Alongside the nuclear controversy, an art scene flourishes. Collectors are taking notice: Prices of Iranian contemporary art have jumped -- and they're likely to keep going up for another five or 10 years. How Westerners are getting in on the action.
MUCH OF THE WORLD LOOKS AT IRAN AND SEES a nuclear threat. A growing number of collectors see something else: a profusion of exciting new art that's likely to command higher and higher prices.
Many pieces of Iranian contemporary art have more than doubled in value over the past few years, thanks to heavy bidding by the Middle East's super-rich. Though the prices are still low by Western standards, rarely topping $1 million, they look set to keep climbing for another five or 10 years as more Westerners join the action.
This is not the art of jihadist propaganda -- with worshipful portraits of mullahs and ayatollahs. Produced by artists living both in and outside Iran, it often reflects the same interests and concerns as Western art. Sometimes it is the art of protest, taking on war, environmental destruction and societal hypocrisy. But in most cases, the references to Iran are less confrontational.
Courtesy of Waterhouse & Dodd
"Tiny Jar," oil on textured canvas by Farhad Moshiri, a top Iranian artists.
.Farhad Moshiri, perhaps the most celebrated Iranian artist, made his name with paintings of ancient jars on textured canvas, evoking a lost way of life in the Middle East. Moshiri, who also makes use of imagery from Iranian popular culture, is one of at least two painters to have been called the Jeff Koons of Iran.
"The Iranian public, and especially artists, are very connected with the rest of the world through traveling and particularly through the Internet," says Shoja Azari, an Iranian-born video artist living in Manhattan. "The uprising that took place last June after the elections in Iran was a FaceBook and Twitter revolution."
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MUCH OF THE WORLD LOOKS AT IRAN AND SEES a nuclear threat. A growing number of collectors see something else: a profusion of exciting new art that's likely to command higher and higher prices.
Many pieces of Iranian contemporary art have more than doubled in value over the past few years, thanks to heavy bidding by the Middle East's super-rich. Though the prices are still low by Western standards, rarely topping $1 million, they look set to keep climbing for another five or 10 years as more Westerners join the action.
This is not the art of jihadist propaganda -- with worshipful portraits of mullahs and ayatollahs. Produced by artists living both in and outside Iran, it often reflects the same interests and concerns as Western art. Sometimes it is the art of protest, taking on war, environmental destruction and societal hypocrisy. But in most cases, the references to Iran are less confrontational.
Courtesy of Waterhouse & Dodd
"Tiny Jar," oil on textured canvas by Farhad Moshiri, a top Iranian artists.
.Farhad Moshiri, perhaps the most celebrated Iranian artist, made his name with paintings of ancient jars on textured canvas, evoking a lost way of life in the Middle East. Moshiri, who also makes use of imagery from Iranian popular culture, is one of at least two painters to have been called the Jeff Koons of Iran.
"The Iranian public, and especially artists, are very connected with the rest of the world through traveling and particularly through the Internet," says Shoja Azari, an Iranian-born video artist living in Manhattan. "The uprising that took place last June after the elections in Iran was a FaceBook and Twitter revolution."
Click Here to Read More
