{"uid":"BHMSiwTY86uQfwlv","type":"curator","tags":[],"group":"no","group_name":null,"project_title":"Artistic Residency and solo exhibition - Rouzbeh Akhbari","summary":"Akhbari's research revolves around the legends of \u2018edible earth\u2019 in connection to purported paranormal activities in the strait of Hormuz, Persian Gulf. Inspired by a medieval illustration of a Portuguese courtyard on the Island of Hormuz, he looks at the ways in which myth-making plays a significant role in shaping the socio-cultural identity of trade-centric geographies. In the 16th century, during Portuguese colonial campaigns, tales about the existence of supernatural forces flooding European settlements in Hormuz circulated widely; and subsequently were depicted in the famous C\u00f3dice Casanatense as a \u201ctechnology against the intense heat!\u201d Simultaneously, rumours about Hormuz\u2019s inhabitants as lustful \u2018earth eaters\u2019 were rampant, giving rise to a series of odd phantasmagorias that facilitated the \u2018othering\u2019 and moral justification of colonial endeavours in the peripheries of the Indian Ocean. \n\nAkhbari's goal for pursuing this line of investigation over a 1-month research residency in Lisbon in 2021 followed by an exhibition, is to unsettle common political interpretations of middle-eastern industrial expansion as either a natural capitalist miracle or an unfortunate resource curse. He aims to highlight the role of constructed fiction in facilitating imperial occupation and to find a critical lens to unpack the spectres of various mythologies in the upkeep of neo-imperial hegemonies and continued proxy battles over ancient trade networks.","space":"The research residency will take place at the Hangar, an Artistic Research Center located in Gra\u00e7a, Lisbon. \nThe solo exhibition will take place at the Gallery of the Catholic University in Lisbon which is composed of a large room (90 square meters) and a small room (a black box, for video, 15 square meters). The Gallery is a space for exhibitions within Cultura@Catolica, a center of education, talks, and conversations that stimulate the development of artistic and theoretical practices.","artists_proposal":"Rouzbeh Akhbari (Tehran, Iran, 1992) is an artist working in video installation and film. His practice is research-driven and usually exists at the intersections of political economy, story-telling and critical architecture & planning. Through a delicate examination of the violences and intimacies that occur at the boundaries of lived experience and constructed histories, he uncovers the minutiae of power that organizes and regiments the world around us. Akhbari was trained as a sculptor at OCAD University and holds a graduate degree in visual studies from University of Toronto's School of Architecture, Landscape and Design.\n\nhttp:\/\/www.rouzbehakhbari.com\/","members":[],"lang":"en","status":"ok","video_link_password":null,"video_link":null,"audio_link_password":null,"audio_link":null,"images_link_password":null,"images_link":null,"cellphone":null,"description":null,"estimated_budget":null,"complementary_info":null,"names":"Luisa","surname":"Santos","email":"luisa.santos@network.rca.ac.uk","dni_type":"Other","dni":"11647716","address":"rua Jos\u00e9 Estev\u00e3o 22-2A 1150-202","city":"lisbon","nacionality":"portuguese","country_id":"185","birthdate":"1980-10-28T00:00:00.000Z","birthdate_2":"1980-10-28T00:00:00.000Z","telephone":"003519183241","web":"https:\/\/luisa-santos.weebly.com\/"}