AMIR H. FALLAH

Amir H. Fallah is an Iranian-born American sculptor and painter whose work explores systems of representation embedded in the history of Western art. His ornate environments combine visual vocabularies of painting and collage to deconstruct traditional notions of identity formation, while simultaneously defying expectations of the genre for portraiture by removing or obscuring the central figure.

In Fallah’s works, the absence of the sitter’s likeness is substituted with a wider representation of their personhood—one that spans time and cultures and is articulated through a network of symbols and imagery. Fallah’s paintings question not only the historical role of portraiture, but the cultural systems that are used to identify one person from another.

ABOUT THE WORK:

Fallah’s paintings of veiled subjects capitalize on ambiguity to skillfully weave fact and fiction while questioning how one might create a portrait without representing the individual features of the sitter. They employ a lexicon of symbols that amalgamate personal narratives with historical and contemporary parables.The stories that surround his subjects are deeply personal—they are told through the intimate possessions they hold most dear. The work thus addresses generational immigrant experiences of movement, trauma, and celebration. Fallah wryly incorporates Western art historical references, pop cultural symbols and references into these highly patterned paintings that serve as an entry point to discuss race, representation, and the memories of cultures and countries left behind. Through this process, the artist's works employ nuanced and emotive narratives that evoke an inquiry about identity, the immigrant experience, and the history of portraiture.