Untitled 

Editor: We’re looking at an Untitled oil painting by Behjat Sadr. I don’t see a date for it. My immediate reaction is its imposing verticality; the dark ground is slashed by these…columns? What do you see in this piece? Curator: Well, first, we need to remember the political context of abstract expressionism. Many artists, particularly after World War II, felt representational art was inadequate to express the trauma and the changing social fabric. Sadr, as an Iranian woman working internationally, particularly in Italy, engages with this tradition but brings her unique perspective. The bold, gestural strokes – almost violent – can be seen as a rejection of traditional artistic and social constraints. Do you see how the ‘columns,’ as you call them, disrupt the darkness, demanding space? Editor: Yes, the texture, the very tactile nature of the paint…it’s almost aggressive. So you’re saying that for Sadr, abstraction becomes a political language? Curator: Precisely. It’s about agency, about claiming space, about a new visual vocabulary that challenges the status quo. Think about the mid-20th century art world: dominated by men, by Western perspectives. Her presence itself, making art like this, is a political act. How might the work be perceived in different geopolitical contexts? Editor: I guess it’s easy to look at something abstract and miss all of that embedded social history. It really transforms how I see the piece, realizing that abstraction can be a statement. Curator: It is a statement, and her work serves as an enduring voice to prompt ongoing inquiries around power, representation and societal discourse. Editor: I will look at abstract paintings with different eyes from now. Thanks.