A talk by and conversation with Shirazeh Houshiary and the collector Mohammed Afkhami to celebrate the launch of Honar: The Afkhami Collection of Modern and Contemporary Iranian Art, by Sussan Babaie and Venetia Porter, with Natasha Morris (Phaidon Press, 2017).
Shirazeh Houshiary (1955 Shiraz) was among the new generation of British sculptors, along with Anish Kapoor and Richard Deacon, to rise in the 1980s. She was shortlisted for the 1994 Turner Prize, and returned to Tate Britain in 2016 with the commission famously known as the upside-down Christmas Tree installed in the museum’s newly refurbished Rotunda. Her installations include the commission she won for the permanent design of the East Window and Altar at St Martin-in-the-Fields (2008 & 2011). Houshiary has been exhibited and collected worldwide and has taken part in biennials, most recently in this 2017 Venice Biennale with a sculptural installation of the subtly twisting organic forms of a hollow tower made of layers of cast Murano glass blocks.
The artist’s talk considers aspects of her practice in painting, installation, architectural projects and film. The talk is followed by a conversation among Houshiary, Mohammed Afkhami and the authors of Honar. This event celebrates with a drinks-and-canapé reception afterwards.