PRESS RELEASE

“Our direct experience and idea of understanding things that happen gradually are limited to a certain amount.”
Georg Simmel

Once when I was wandering in the bazaar next to Shah Abdol-Azim shrine, I encountered talismans and sacred bowls for the first time. Having some prior familiarity with the items, I pre-assumed that these unique objects were on display for aesthetic reasons alone. My conversation with the patient vendor who answered my questions as thoroughly as possible; however, was the beginning of a journey of many fundamental questions. The exhibition on display is the result of my chase for answers. I was fascinated by the massive circle of supply and demand in the stores that I explored in different parts of Tehran (namely Tajrish bazaar next to the Imamzadeh Saleh shrine, Tehran Grand bazaar next to Shah Mosque, Manouchehri Street, etc). Sacred pieces that due to their decorative features, repetitive function and of course mass production are not being traded behind closed doors anymore. They no longer belong to the private, invisible and implicit sphere, but have instead found their way to the consumer, been materialized and become an everyday object.
What I was looking for was not a typological, diminutive representation of sacred objects that were categorized based on their availability or popularity. Hence, by being present amongst fortunetellers and enchanters and reading through books of spells and occults, I tried to put a cohesive narration together; albeit the sensitivity of the subject has made parts of the documentation impossible.
In my opinion, in order to understand the reasons behind the prevalence of occult objects, one needs to focus on not only the historical traditions and the flaws of the educational system but also the political and economic aspects. In fact, the downfall of many social formations will redirect atomized citizens to look for such delegate defences. The historical demands for such objects through different periods indicate that people, regardless of their gender, look for things to cover their feelings of failure, frustration and compulsion in order to overcome the fear of the unknown future by standing on the border between reality and imagination.

– Aidin Bagheri