Nargess Hashemi | The Pleasure in Boredom catalogue | Exhibition #1 2014

The Pleasure in
Boredom

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Nargess Hashemi

11 January – 27 February 2014

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“Where artistic conventions are grounded in
strict discipline and the application of rigid
formulas, the practice of art will exclude
any relaxation of standards. It is only when
these standards are deliberately loosened
that artistic practice becomes permeable to
that free play of pen we call doodling.”
E. H Gombrich

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The Pleasure in The Pleasure in Boredom charts Nargess Hashemi’s
Boredom process of developing over ten years worth of
experimentation on graph paper. She has doodled
Nargess Hashemi in notebooks from a young age; during long, tedious
11 January – 27 February 2014 car journeys, over extended visits with family and at
art university where her teacher, artist Farshid Maleki
Front and Back Covers: also assigned her exercises of repeated line drawings.
Carpet, 2013 The practice has become somewhat of a lifelong
Pen on graph paper obsession for the artist. Using only the most basic
Diptych, 100 x 70 cmeach panel, materials, the artist adopts a commonly unfocused
100 x 140 cm overall. and subliminal practice and refines it, resulting in
Inside Cover: vibrant artworks of great complexity.
Installation view.
The title of the exhibition references an essay by E.H.
Gombrich, in which the art historian examines the
psychology behind the act of doodling and explores
its artistic merit and relevance. He suggests that not
only is the act a subconscious impulse, something
that we are naturally compelled to do in a dreamlike,
absentminded state, but that its importance lies in
the fact that it is a vital tool of uninhibited expression,
as well as being an integral way in which countless
numbers of artists and scribes have practiced and
refined their craft.

The Home and Carpet series exhibited in this show
consist of brightly coloured compositions made up of
very simple repeated, shapes occupying the minute
1mm x 1mm squares on the graph paper. Many of the
works in Home depict architectural forms reminiscent
of those in her earlier series Qajar. Qajar (2002-2006)
was inspired by the extravagance and idiosyncratic
aesthetic of the royal court. In these works the artist
uses the technique of monoprinting to assemble an
eclectic cast of characters taken from contemporary
figures as well as from the monumental oil paintings
of the Qajar period. Made up of vivacious dancing
girls and the demigod like presence of Fath Ali Shah,
Hashemi places them onto flattened perspective,
cross sectional, architectural backgrounds commonly
seen throughout earlier Timurid and Safavid
miniatures. By doing this, she symbolically reclaims
the long tradition of illustrated poetry manuscripts

“The question of when a doodle is
not a doodle still awaits an answer
from philosophers.” *

Drawings from the artist’s sketchbooks, 1999-2006.

virtually abandoned during the Qajar dynasty. In her own admission Hashemi’s examinations into this
Home, Hashemi eliminates the figures and leaves area have not yet reached their zenith and as she
behind empty rooms and cityscapes devoid of human continues to explore the endless permutations of this
presence and ultimately takes the work to its purest adaptable form she is still finding new and unexpected
and most abstract conclusion. ways in which to play.

Meanwhile works in the series Carpet resemble Jules McDevitt
Oriental floor coverings with concentric borders Islamic Art Specialist
containing fields of decorative patterns. In a reference
to her Stories From the Boudoir (2008) and Wrap
Me Up In You series (2009 - 2011) that centered
on domestic scenes, the artist reminds us of the
notion that carpets are an extension of the Iranian
household, a portable home of sorts. The artist thinks
of these works as a metaphorical representation of
the essence of ‘home’ and all of the monotonous
repetition, constraint and order that comes with
that concept. Unlike the many complexities and
restrictions of real life, here, Hashemi’s only constraint
is the size of the individual pieces of graph paper.
She breaks free of these physical limitations by using
multiple sheets and continuing the pattern almost
seamlessly, from one page to the next, sometimes
using up to 6 sheets for a single work. In theory, the
possibilities are endless, leaving room for the viewer
to envisage even further development.

As an extension of this series, the artist uses the
textile knotting technique of macramé which she
learned as a young child. By using the colourful yarn
as another vehicle to experiment with doodling, she
takes the concept in a whimsical direction. In this
instance the artist rejects the standard guidance of a
pattern, and instead allows the shape of the work to
develop organically; resulting in unfettered, irregular
and amoeba-like forms.

The universal practice of subconscious, experimental
drawing lends itself to creativity and innovation. By

*Gombrich, E. H. “Pleasures of Boredom: Four Centuries of Doodles.”
In E. H. Gombrich, The Uses of Images: Studies in the Social Function
of Art and Visual Communication 212-225. Phaidon: London 1999.

Left:
Qajar, 2007
Ink monoprint, felt-tip marker and
acrylic on glossy paper 70 x 100 cm.

Right:
Qajar, 2007
Ink monoprint, felt-tip marker and
acrylic on glossy paper 70 x 100 cm.









Previous Page:
Carpet, 2013
Pen on graph paper
Quadriptych 70 x 100 cm each,
140 x 200 cm overall.

This Page:
Carpet, 2013
Pen on graph paper
Triptych, 100 x 70 cm each panel,
100 x 210 cm overall.



Left:
Rug, 2013
Yarn,102 x 142 cm (approx.)

This page:
Home, 2013
Pen on graph paper, 100 x 70 cm.

Nargess Hashemi The works of Nargess Hashemi are intimate
Biography observations of the dualities that permeate her daily
existence in Iran. The artist, born 1979, Tehran, grew
up in a traditional household and went on to study
Ancient Persian at the Neyshabour Institute and
Fine Art at Tehran University. Following her studies
Hashemi has had several solo shows in Tehran
including at Mah Art Gallery and Aaran Gallery.
She has also exhibited in France with ‘Iranian Spring’
(2004), an exhibition of six artists who are inspired
by the art of Persian miniature painting and poetry
selected by the Tehran Museum of Contemporary
Art, and in the US, a touring group show entitled
‘Wishes and Dreams: Iran’s New Generation
Emerges ‘ (2007). Hashemi has had several solo
shows at Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde, including
Wrap Me Up In You (2010).

Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde was founded in Published in 2014 by Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde
Dubai in 2006 with a dynamic program of emerging on the occasion of the exhibition
and mid career artists. Today the gallery remains
committed to nurturing its artists and providing The Pleasure in Boredom
them with pivotal exhibition platforms throughout Nargess Hashemi
their career. By maintaining this creative dialogue, 11 January - 27 February, 2014
the gallery presents a challenging and innovative Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde, Dubai
contemporary program that promotes the
extraordinary visual expressions of its artists from Editor: Barrak Alzaid
the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia and Iran. Introduction: Jules McDevitt
All images courtesy the artist and
Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde
Street 8, Alserkal ave, #17
Al Quoz 1, Dubai, UAE

T +971 (0) 4 323 5052
F +971 (0) 4 323 6761
E [email protected]

ivde.net

© 2014 Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde. All rights reserved. No part
of this catalogue may be reproduced in any manner without the
written permission of the artist and Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde.

Exhibit 01 / 2014