Reza Derakshani is a multifaceted artist; a musician, a visual and an installation artist. He was born in Sangsar in the northeast of Iran and studied visual arts in Tehran and the United States. His art career took him to New York and Italy, but his art traveled to exhibitions and festivals throughout the world.

Through his work he portrays his cultural roots, the influence of global art movements and his movement across the globe. His artwork - best know for its large scale and experimental use of materials, including glitter, soil, sand, tar, gold and silver leaf among others - is a reflection of his multi-layered identity as an artist and a citizen of the world.

"Silence of the Night marks a significant turn for Derakshani. Rather than highlighting land and culture by using vibrant colours, lyrical imagery and words, the artist now employs a strict palette of mostly black and white, and applies limited mediums of sand, soil and enamel," reads the exhibit’s press release.

"This new body of work acts as a memorial to the transience of nationhood and home. Persian iconography…rendered in black sand, act as an embodiment of mourning and as a commemoration of a land and culture that once was."

Programme:
Silence of the Night
6 September - 6 October
Leila Heller Gallery
568 West 25th Street
New York, NY 10001, United States