A landscape painting, titled “To Be Series #1” by Iranian artist Arezoo Shahdadi, who is among the 11 Iranian women artists’ works featured on Visions of Iran, a Hong Kong exhibit running until end of July. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

An exhibition shining a spotlight on the women artists who are thriving in Iran’s art scene is currently on show in Hong Kong until the end of July.

The art showcase, titled Visions of Iran, is a collaboration between Pékin Fine Arts (Hong Kong) and Yas Art Space.

In April, the duo held Iran To Hong Kong: A Group Exhibition of Iranian and Chinese Artists, also at the Pékin Fine Arts space in Wong Chuk Hang

It consists of 11 paintings and works on paper by young female Iranian artists living and working in Iran, whose practices are linked by the common theme of landscape, both natural and architectural.

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Iranian curator Yas Mostashari Chang, who is also the founder of Yas Art Space, said that there was no specific event that inspired the selection of all women artists for the show, but it came from a recent visit she made to Iran.

“The Iranian art scene is rich and vibrant and there are many Iranian female artists creating beautiful work, which is a little-known fact in Hong Kong, so I decided to choose works by Iranian young women in this exhibition,” said Mostashari Chang.

“I follow Iranian artists and galleries in Iran closely, and this time I was quite impressed by the new works I was seeing which turned out to be mostly female artists, which led me to this selection of works eventually,” she added.

Meg Maggio, director at Pékin Fine Arts (Hong Kong), said that the works being showcased are “fresh” as most are done this year or last year, which she also said is “a true reflection of the vibrant art scene in Iran today”.

This is the second time this year that Maggio and Mostashari Chang have teamed up to hold an exhibition featuring Iranian artists.

In April, the duo held Iran To Hong Kong: A Group Exhibition of Iranian and Chinese Artists, also at the Pékin Fine Arts space in Wong Chuk Hang.

That followed the success of Calligraphic Art: Interaction Between Hong Kong and Iranian Artists at the Hong Kong Central Library Exhibition Gallery in March. It was co-curated by Mostashari Chang and Hong Kong artist Wucius Wong.

The Visions of Iran exhibition’s press release noted that immediately following 1979’s Islamic Revolution, art in Iran was mostly limited to calligraphy, still-life drawing, and graphic design themes of revolution and war.

Art enthusiasts admiring the work “Blue Tile” by Maryam Farzadian, which is currently part of the “Visions of Iran” exhibit organized by Pékin Fine Arts (Hong Kong) and Yas Art Space in Wong Chuk Hang (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

According to the exhibition, the art scene slowly embraced abstraction as the dominant aesthetic voice before recently focusing on diverse formats and new media.

The recent shift captures socio-economic topics that raise awareness of pressing issues such as environmental protection, gender equality, economic growth, and political reform.

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Among the featured artists are Teheran-born Maryam Farshad, Arezoo Shahdadi, Parissa Taghipour, Samira Eskandarfar, and Sanahin Babajanians, as well as Isfahan-born Maryam Farzadian.

“Together, we aim to give artists — not only those from China and Asia but also global artists — a platform to exhibit their work in Hong Kong. We are quite pleased with the interest and enthusiasm the exhibition has received from Hong Kong-based art collectors and exhibition goers,” said Maggio.

“The reception from Hong Kong has been quite positive and enthusiastic. The exhibition is on until the end of July, so, hopefully, more people will have a chance to visit,” said Mostashari Chang.

Contact the writer at jan@chinadailyapac.com