Reza Aramesh / Fragment of the Self / Night Gallery, Los Angeles
- LA Art Documents
- 7 days ago
- 2 min read
Reza Aramesh
Fragment of the Self
Night Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
April 11 - June 28, 2025
Fragment of the Self is an exhibition of new work from four series by Reza Aramesh at Night Gallery.
Aramesh challenges representations of the subjected body within historical, cultural, and political contexts. He deconstructs scenes of violence from media coverage of international conflicts that span the mid-20th century through today. His approach critically examines race, class, and sexuality while engaging with the Western art historical canon: Goya, José de Ribera, Andrea Mantegna, and Caravaggio are particular influences.
In collaboration with non-professional models, Aramesh reenacts carefully selected source materials as he transforms journalistic imagery into new forms. By stripping away overt markers of war, he displaces his subjects from the immediate realities of conflict. A resulting tension between empathy and cruelty underscores the body's transformation into mythology.
Fragment of the Self introduces four distinct series: Study of the Head as Cultural Artefacts (photographs of plaster heads alongside a bronze sculpture), Study of Color as Colonial Delight (embroideries on silk), Study for Fragment of the Self (drawings on paper that serve as meditative studies on the fragmented body), and Fragment of the Self (three marble sculptures).
In each of these series, Aramesh delves into the literal and metaphorical meanings of sculptural fragments. He challenges traditional notions of wholeness and identity, highlighting resilience and adaptability. His works invite reflections on how meaning and beauty persist even in imperfection.
In Study of Color as Colonial Delight, Aramesh selects specific hues from historical Orientalist paintings, first translating them into drawings based on reportage images and then rendering them as hand-stitched embroidery figures on silk.
Through these material and conceptual investigations, Fragment of the Self bridges the personal and the collective, the historical and the contemporary. Aramesh says: “I’m in dialogue with artists and atrocities of the past, excavating history as I construct alternate narratives.”
