Arash Nassiri

Born in Tehran in 1986, I spent my childhood in the Geneva suburb of Cité du Lignon. A post-war social housing project, this complex of buildings on the banks of the Rhône is home to thousands of residents of around one hundred nationalities. It was in this universalist utopia that my earliest memories are rooted. My many trips back and forth to Tehran forged a counterpoint to this experience and questioned my sense of belonging to these places. It is in the gap between these two territories that my work is situated.

Since 2014, I have begun a series of works that question this gap and put into perspective what Tehran’s legacy has become. Taking codes from Hollywood cinema, TV series and music videos, I reuse these popular formats to make them convey new narratives, represent memory and speculate on the future of the Iranian capital. The latter is particularly dear to me, both for what it means to me personally and for what its bankruptcy has left behind.

Through these pieces, I bring into play the negotiation of a heritage: how it defines us, but also how to escape it.

Arash Nassiri (born in 1986 in Tehran, Iran; lives and works in Berlin) is a laureate of the Berlin Program for Artists. In 2024, he will take up a residency in Los Angeles with the Villa Albertine. His work has been exhibited at CAPC Bordeaux in 2023, Metabolic Rift in 2021, Palais de Tokyo and Flax Los Angeles in 2018. His video works have been screened at the New Directors MOMA, the Berlin Biennale, ICA London and CPH DOX. He is a graduate of the École nationale supérieure des Arts Décoratifs in Paris and Le Fresnoy, Studio National des Arts Contemporains.