BAHAR BATVAND

Bahar Batvand (*1974 in Ahwaz) studied Painting at the Free Islamic University in Teheran (1994–99). In 2000, she immigrated to Germany, where she studied Stage Design in the class of Prof. Karl Kneidl at the Academy of Art in Düsseldorf (2004–09, Diploma and Master Student). She lives and works in Düsseldorf.

As a child, Bahar Batvand experienced the first Gulf War firsthand – memories that continue to provide impetus for and play an integral role in her complex artistic work. The destruction of material is a common theme throughout her entire artistic oeuvre. Nevertheless, she does not see destruction as being solely negative, but is rather much more interested in processes of alteration and transformation.

Instead of canvas, she generally prefers to use discarded pieces of furniture, scrap metal, and so-called ‘useless’ objects as the basis for her pictorial deformations. In these (for most people) worthless things, she discovers a story all its own, which is, in her view incomplete, since her own work with the materials has yet to be concluded. Changing meaning, creating a new substance, a new thing, as well as a new being, so to speak.
In her current installation, a kind of carpet comprised of black bubble-wrap lies spread out on the floor. Here as well, memories of war experiences intertwine with investigations into the properties of particular materials. The (chaotic) order of things is consciously transformed into an (ordered) chaos. The result is not only visually fascinating, but also by all means audible – the viewer’s walking over the material creates sounds that, for their part, seem like a kind of soundtrack of visible destruction.

Solo Exhibitions:

Group Exhibitions (selection):