Causey Contemporary will feature a selection of Behbahani's large-scale mixed media paintings from her My Faantazee series at their DUMBO location, marking the artist's first solo exhibition with the gallery.Her recent body of paintings, created in her Brooklyn studio, five years after relocating to the United States from Iran, were completed with an anticipated freedom from the feeling that "you had to live-did live, from habit that became instinct-in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized" (George Orwell, 1984). However, in My Faantazee, Behbahani found that the "essence of being watched is universally infused." The works capture their subjects mid-action, as if by camera. Moments are frozen. Their endeavors come with the promise of sweet 'treats'-in the name of a liberation operation or simply a 'free rectal exam'. Witty characters are ensnared in this pop-grotesque world: horny babies, seductive kids, totemic fetish toys, donkeys and American-made superheroes. Surprised that her physical displacement from the East to the West brought her a vivid political and social déjà vu, the protagonists in Behbahani's new series-from babies to iconic superheroes-each entertain a fear of being watched. They anxiously search for hidden cameras and eyes. This constant fear imbues a childhood hyper-maturity as well as an adult infancy, as beings in all stages of life are subjugated to this invasiveness.Hidden Camera will open with an artist's reception on February 7 as part of First Thursday in DUMBO and will run through Sunday, March 3, 2013.
More Articles by This Author...
VIDEO: Joss Whedon Chats THE AVENGERS 2 on LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON
Rihanna for River Island Summer Collection Lands May 25th
Exclusive InDepth InterView Audra McDonald Talks GO BACK HOME Album & PBS Special, MARLENE DIETRICH'S ABC, Upcoming Projects & More
Donkey Kong Country Returns is Back and Optimized for Portable Play
BWW Blog: Leah Edwards - Practice. Perform. Repeat
BWW Reviews: Millepied, Wheeldon and Martins - A Mixed Bag for City Ballet
Jay Leno Hosts Magical Evening to Celebrate Partnership for Cancer Care
All Materials Copyright 2013 Wisdom Digital Media | Privacy Policy | RSS/XMLFeeds