Undiscovered Minimalism: Gelims від Northern Iran

Over the course of the past two decades a previously unrecognized genre of startlingly modern looking large flat woven hangings and covers (gelims) has emerged from an isolated highland region in Mazandaran Province in northern Iran. No one had imagined that hidden in the forests south of the Caspian Sea there could have existed such sophisticated treasures, which in their deceptive simplicity of abstract patterning and subtle colouring are much in accord with the aesthetic canons of contemporary ‘minimalist’ art. Published in association with Hali.

About the Author
Parviz Tanavoli is an internationally recognized contemporary Iranian painter and sculptor, his work has been exhibited in museum and art galleries around the world and can be found in the British Museum, MOMA, New York, the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, among other public and private collections. He lives and works between Vancouver, Canada and Tehran.