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Lot Essay
Renowned late artist Nasser Assar was a major player in the development of Modernism in Iran in the 1960s and 1970s. He was among the first generation of self-exiled artists from his native Iran when he left Tehran and settled in Paris in 1953.
Exposed to the finest exhibits in the city of Paris where he was working, he was deeply struck, in particular, by Chinese painting which then shifted his artistic practice into an exploration of Asian motifs which his works, later referred to as prose paintings due to his inspiration from Japanese philosophies of Taoist Liou Kia-hway.
The artist referred to his early works, to which this exquisite one from 1963 belongs to, as non-figurative. The present work has no defined shape and a kind of immateriality lyrically emanates from it. As dark dribbles appear like Chinese ink in a blue-grey background they beautifully splash out in this delicate ethereal composition.
Assar’s prose-paintings intimately associates his work with fellow artist Sohrab Sepehri, who too explored the notions of Zen within his abstract and Trees series. Unlike Sepehri who discovered these motifs from the East itself, Assar discovered and internalised the Far East from the West. Just as meditation in the school of Zen occurs without any anchor nor object, the artists’ works from that period are devoid of any material form or figure.
Another defining source of inspiration in Assar’s career was oriental philosophy and poetry in which he was immersed early on through his father in Tehran. His in-depth influence of Sufi mysticism creates thought-provoking non-figurative compositions within his oeuvre. In this way, the interplay between Iran’s rich cultural heritage and modernism is remarkably accomplished through Assar’s new combining approach. As such, the artist’s works are righteously reminiscent of Western contemporary movements such as Minimalism specifically, which was gaining much momentum in America simultaneously.
Assar has been largely exhibited in major European cities such as Paris, London, Milano and Brussels since the 1950s and since the 1980s, his talent crossed continents to the United States of America where his works was also presented.
Exposed to the finest exhibits in the city of Paris where he was working, he was deeply struck, in particular, by Chinese painting which then shifted his artistic practice into an exploration of Asian motifs which his works, later referred to as prose paintings due to his inspiration from Japanese philosophies of Taoist Liou Kia-hway.
The artist referred to his early works, to which this exquisite one from 1963 belongs to, as non-figurative. The present work has no defined shape and a kind of immateriality lyrically emanates from it. As dark dribbles appear like Chinese ink in a blue-grey background they beautifully splash out in this delicate ethereal composition.
Assar’s prose-paintings intimately associates his work with fellow artist Sohrab Sepehri, who too explored the notions of Zen within his abstract and Trees series. Unlike Sepehri who discovered these motifs from the East itself, Assar discovered and internalised the Far East from the West. Just as meditation in the school of Zen occurs without any anchor nor object, the artists’ works from that period are devoid of any material form or figure.
Another defining source of inspiration in Assar’s career was oriental philosophy and poetry in which he was immersed early on through his father in Tehran. His in-depth influence of Sufi mysticism creates thought-provoking non-figurative compositions within his oeuvre. In this way, the interplay between Iran’s rich cultural heritage and modernism is remarkably accomplished through Assar’s new combining approach. As such, the artist’s works are righteously reminiscent of Western contemporary movements such as Minimalism specifically, which was gaining much momentum in America simultaneously.
Assar has been largely exhibited in major European cities such as Paris, London, Milano and Brussels since the 1950s and since the 1980s, his talent crossed continents to the United States of America where his works was also presented.