MAKAN NEGAHBAN

Collisions

Lois Lambert Gallery
loislambertgallery.com

VIP Preview: Saturday, September 10, 2022 @4PM-6PM

Opening Reception: Saturday, September 10, 2022 @6PM-9PM

Exhibition Dates: September 10 - November 5, 2022

Artist Page: https://www.loislambertgallery.com/makan-negahban

SANTA MONICA, CA - Lois Lambert Gallery presents Collisions, the newest exhibit of work by artist Makan Negahban.

Negahban is a self-taught artist with a background in music, who began with the question: “How would a painter make a song?” Two distinct bodies of work are being shown alongside one another, tracing Negahban’s progression over the last several years.

In his earlier work, Negahban combined painting and collage to create portraits of individuals that have touched his life and helped him to develop a sense of belonging. He thinks of these mixed media portraits as fragments of his identity. Each painting can be seen as an expression of gratitude from the artist, to the individuals depicted.

In his latest work though, Negahban moves away from the bright colors and intricate details involved in his portraits. Now, the artist works on raw, unstretched canvas, allowing the paintings to be much looser and more playful. Rather than painting portraits of loved ones, Negahban depicts scenes that he has no association with. Each one is set against a black background, and though the narratives of the paintings are intentionally obscured, they are filled with emotion. With these paintings, Negahban documents collective emotion and reflects on the experience of being human.

Makan Negahban’s art is driven by his curiosity for the unknown, leading him to experiment with a variety of different mediums and techniques. He works with collage, crackle paste, pigment sticks, acrylic inks and oils. His approach in this series is driven by visual interest, rather than any specific narrative. In 2011, he received a B.A. in Psychology and Social Behavior from the University of California, Irvine.