Iranian Kurdistan

The artwork is dominated by radiant ochre, organised around crimson, turquoise, green, white and soft pink. Rounded cells and sweeping curves accumulate into a compact ascending structure, while a few pointed extensions interrupt its otherwise organic silhouette. Dense impasto makes the ochre field feel almost geological, yet the internal colours remain sharply differentiated. Circular forms recur throughout, creating visual continuity between otherwise separate compartments. The composition suggests cultural inheritance as accumulation: identities and memories remain distinct, but their repeated intersections create a resilient and richly layered whole.

Iranian Kurdistan refers broadly to Kurdish-inhabited areas of western and north-western Iran, principally across Kurdistan, Kermanshah, West Azerbaijan and Ilam provinces. Set among the Zagros Mountains and adjoining uplands, the region has long connected the Iranian plateau with Mesopotamia and Anatolia. Kurdish communities developed within successive Iranian states and regional principalities, preserving strong local identities while participating in the wider historical and cultural life of Iran. Kurdish culture in Iran is linguistically and socially diverse, with varieties including Sorani, Southern Kurdish and Kurmanji alongside Persian and other regional languages. Oral poetry, epic storytelling and music have been important vehicles of memory, while dance, colourful textiles, weaving and distinctive forms of dress sustain communal expression. Kurdish literature has developed across several scripts and political boundaries, giving cultural identity a character that is both deeply local and connected to a wider Kurdish world.