Sam Samiee

Sam Samiee synthesizes his heavy research on art history, Persian poetry, and psychoanalytic theories into studio practice that employs painting in multiple registers. The characteristic of his installations as extended paintings is the break from the tradition of flat painting and a return to the original question of how artists can represent the three-dimensional world in the space of painting as a metaphor for a set of ideas. He employs a range of painterly attitudes from oil paintings to iPad paintings, figuration, abstraction, the break of the rectangular frame, and usage of text among other methods. ...

Dastan features an extensive and multi-dimensional program focusing on the full spectrum of Iranian contemporary and modern art. Dastan's program includes Dastan's Basement, +2, ParallelCircuit, Zaal Art Gallery, and Dastan:Outside. In addition to hosting exhibitions, Dastan publishes artist books and monographs on Iranian art, features film screenings, performance projects, and other events. Dastan's original space, Dastan’s Basement, was established in 2012 in Tehran, Iran. The Basement is dedicated to exhibiting emerging and cutting-edge Iranian art. +2 is a gallery launched by Dastan in 2015. This space showcases established Iranian artists and masters. Parallel Circuit aims to open the way for artists standing at the interstices of based and experimental art. Zaal Art Gallery is an international gallery in Ontario, Canada. The gallery provides an engaging and immersive space for both enthusiasts and professionals. Since opening its primary space in 2012, Dastan has continuously hosted pop-up curated exhibitions around the city of Tehran under the title Dastan:Outside. ...