Sardegh Tirafkan - Iranian Man

The quest for an identity caught between East and West, between pre-Islamic and Islamic Persian tradition and western models, is characteristic of this generation of Iranian artists to which Sadegh Tirafkan belongs. They question their ancestral culture with critical acuity, through the language of contemporary art. The singularity
of Sadegh Tirafkan among this generation of internationally renowned Iranian photographic artists is perhaps that he is a man. Like Shirin Neshat who, among others, explores male-female relations, Sadegh Tirafkan questions the similarly problematic status of the male body in Iranian culture. He also presents himself in his compositions, from his first work on Persepolis or on Hamurabi's Code, to his more recent photographs which combine calligraphy and tattooing, defying the taboo of the representation of the human body, which is often naked; and the fact that his images imply a latent homoerotic sensitivity is not the least of his audacities.

Sadegh Tirafkan, a photographic artist who also uses the medium of video and installations, has exhibitions in Tehran and New York alike, where he is represented by the Lehmann Maupin Gallery. In Paris, the Vu Gallery has been presenting his work for several years. He grew up and lived in Tehran and today lives in Toronto. Darius Shayegan, author of several core publications on the compared contributions of enlightenment philosophy and oriental philosophies, wrote an article on this crossroads of cultures. Christian Caujolle is the director of the Vu Gallery (Paris).