'I Put It There You Name It', reliably madcap video exploits from two Iranian artists


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With the artworld flying into Dubai for the city's annual art fair next week (Art Dubai, March 21-24), the galleries around town go all bells-and-whistles, showcasing their best artists and most daring exhibitions.

Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde has launched into its new show with exactly this sort of gusto, as Rokni & Ramin Haerizadeh work in collaboration with the painter Hesam Rahmanian to recreate in the gallery the experience of coming into their idiosyncratically adorned home.

Here's a little video they sent us of them preparing for the exhibition:

Rokni and Ramin have been living in Dubai since 2009, after their work in Charles Saatchi's Unveiled: New Art From The Middle East show came to the attention of the Iranian authorities. Advised not to return to Iran, due to the satirical nature and content of their work, the brothers have been living and working in Dubai since.

Their home-cum-studio has attained something of a legendary status in Dubai's art scene. Aside from their extensive art collection, including works by Bahman Mohassess, Jake and Dinos Chapman, David Hockney and Louise Bourgeois, the house is a sensory experience with floors handpainted by the two artists, recovered furniture and bowls that are overflowing with fruits.

For their new show, titled I Put it There You Name it, the brothers have carried the artworks, day-to-day ephemera and miscellaneous accumulations that they live with into the gallery space - breaking through the now-traditional white-box minimalism of an art gallery.

In addition, they're bringing in a batch of new sculpture works produced in collaboration, as well as wall paintings that once adorned their back garden.

Sounds like a fine escape from the well-worn, tried-and-tested world of white spaces lined with pictures. Looks to us like a show that questions the very foundations of how we consume art and culture today, but done in an accessible, exuberant way.

Runs from March 18-May 3. Want more info? See here. Look out for our review when the show opens next week.

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Started: 2019
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Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
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