Post-Art Clarity

The opening line of Faramarz Zahedi's solo exhibition press release reads, simply, "an opportunity for contemplation". Without seeing the art, the more cynical among us may be thinking, surely this is the premise for every exhibition ever produced? But when the gallery itself is telling its audience that slowness and quiet is the key to unlocking the work, you take heed at such a luxurious invitation. There is an instilled quietness to Zahedi's body of work; its title Untitled: Good / some specks of / purple needed / in the middle / set it dry first  might sound a little on the erratic side, but its almost mumbling effect channels the self-taught nature of the artist's work. Zahedi was not legitimised by the art (school) institution, instead spending his life working as a bilingual clerk at the Iranian consulate in London while raising his family. It is the stories that lie amongst this canonically unglamorous life that make the best translations onto the canvas,