Massoud Arabshahi (Iranian, b. 1935)

The Iranian artist Massoud Arabshahi is celebrated for his unprecedented use of symbolism in abstract art. The present work, subtly combines symbols of past and present. Arabshahi's monumental composition questions language as the sole means of expression; many of symbols he uses, including the lotus, the wheel, the shining sun and the tree of life are juxtaposed with geometrical symbols such as circles, squares, curves and spirals.

These shapes carry great meaning in Arabshahi's oeuvre. The circle is the symbol of the universe in its whole and original perfection. In Islamic art, it represents the vaulted sky and divine light. The square evokes perfect stability. A square inside a circle, or a circle inside a square represents a transformation of the spherical form of the sky on a rectangular Earth, or vice versa. In Islam, these symbols often signify the union of all states of being, sublime identity and horizontal and vertical expansion. The vertical line is the embodiment of celestial, spiritual, subjective, positive and active feature, whereas the horizontal line demonstrates earthly, logical, passive and negative aspects.

Massoud Arabshahi combines his search for meaning and direction in today's art world with his continuous urge to question the beliefs and symbols of ancient Persia's iconology and visual vocabulary. His work is unique and rare, as are his ideas and outtake on what the Middle East historically encompasses. The present work, a magnificent and timeless composition, is one of Arabshahi's most striking works.