Sheida Soleimani, Trapping Season, 2017, Archival pigment print, 61 x 45.7 cm, 24 x 20 in., Edition of 5 + 2 APs
One of 12 emerging artists who ‘dominated’ 2019 according to Artnet and one of the select artists to appear in Art of Conversation Sheida Soleimani is definitely one to watch.
And she kicks off 2020 with a new exhibition in Brussells at one of FAD’s favourite galleries Harlan Levey Projects. In this oftentimes humorous and all too relevant project, Soleimani examines power, exploitation, and oil in works that feature queer models wearing masks of Western leaders and ministers of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). In vibrant solo and group portraits, these figures pose with money and oil-related props, engaging in various activities suggestive of corruption and highlighting the correlations between sovereign oil wealth and civil rights abuses. Works to be shown here display Soleimani’s unique ability to unite scathing political commentary and comedy by way of art.
Sheida Soleimani is an Iranian-American artist who lives in Providence. The daughter of political refugees who were persecuted by the Iranian government in the early 1980s, Soleimani makes work that melds sculpture, collage and photography and highlights her own critical perspective on historical and contemporary socio-political occurrences in Iran.
Sheida Soleimani – Medium of Exchange January 9th – March 21st, 2020 Opening: January 9th, 2020, 18:00 – 21:00 Harlan Levey Projects 46 Rue Jean d’Ardenne Straat 1050 Brussels, Belgium @harlan_levey_projects
