Beyond the Cloth a group show at WhiteBox, showcases artists’ work inspired by, and using the Kafiye, articulating a meta-narrative about the complexities of Arab culture and identity.
Category Archive: Arts
Juxtaposing religious, cultural and commercial iconography with sexualized images of the female form, Romulo Sans uses his piercing guerilla lens to expose the icons of power that shape today’s world.
This print article for The Philosopher’s Magazine compares Iranian music–in which riffing and flexing performing skills are seen as the highest marks of artistry–with philosophical theories about classical music, jazz, and improvisation, offering an example of comparative aesthetics in action.
Young, emerging classical musicians who earn a living gigging in Tehran’s rapidly growing public concert circuit share their insights about the evolving faces of contemporary performance.
“Let your hands do the thinking” is the unofficial motto of the traditional Persian musician. Until the late 20th century, many traditional virtuosos didn’t find much value in learning formal music theory at all, believing that it slowed down their creativity while performing. Today, their legacy inspires traditional musicians to foreground embodied learning, believing it fosters a deeply intuitive grasp of musical grammar that drives the creative process.
In downtown Tehran, where a burgeoning theatre scene thrives, an experimental production blends traditional music, indigenous dance, and camp, 1950s “Filmfarsi” cabaret movie influences.
Miriam Ibrahim’s “Piece/Peace of Mine” looks at suicide, repression, and the mundane banalities of everyday life.
A slice of Greek living on Greece’s Peloponnese peninsula culminates in a trip to watch a play in an ancient amphitheater, which is still packing in audiences over 3,000 years after it was built.