“and the alleyway to the prison's garden” was a solo exhibition at Trestle Gallery. This piece was in conversation with another public art installation called “corner of my room ”. The two titles come together as an allegory of family dynamics in diaspora and exile in ways that physical distance impacts the fundamental structures of communication between parents and children. In this work new means of deeper connection are examined to manifest the emotional state when each family member is affected by the conditions of intensive togetherness for a short burst of time in a small space, followed by long stretches of separation in a distant landscape of uncertainty and isolation. The work was developed based on an interview I conducted with my father, in which I showed him a series of short videos depicting the interplay of light and shadow. Originally shot in the corner of my studio, the videos were an attempt to build visions of impossible architectures and landscapes in order to fabricate a sense of displacement. During the interview my father responded to two open-ended questions of “what do you see?” and “why do you say that?” his responses were formal descriptions of the light and shadows, memories evoked by the images resulting in emotional stories of fear, sadness or nostalgia and anticipations of imagined futures. “Like a person struggling so hard, water has covered his face and only his eyes are showing ,” he responded to one snippet. I then built an installation rooted in my father’s perception of spaces and recollections of memories by employing geometric sculptures, mirror-like surfaces, light, and shadows. An audio component plays fragments from the interview This multi-dimensional installation is activated by the projector light as it plays the same video I showed to my father during the interview. As the source of light moves, the reflections can create ever shifting landscapes where the light is materialized into fluid forms emulating waves of an ocean. This installation offers a deeper understanding of light by expanding or altering the human perception of space within a playful place of contemplation and observation. It is a commentary on the infinite ways a world may be imagined and built through the subtle changes of a familiar element such as light. This piece offers a platform that nurtures curiosity, play, and a multitude of perspectives as means of storytelling, expression and world building.
 

and the alleyway to the prison’s garden

• Installation, 2018
• Wood, metal, glue, reflective materials, video light projection
• Variable sizes 


and the alleyway to the prison's garden was exhibited as a solo exhibition at Trestle Gallery. This piece was in conversation with a public art installation called Corner of my room. The two titles come together as an allegory of family interrelationships in exile and diaspora, questioning the way physical distance impacts the fundamental structures of communication and connection between displaced parents and children. In the case of the artist, they examined the emotional impact and conditions of intensive togetherness for a short burst of time in a small space, followed by long stretches of separation in faraway lands. 

In the process of making this work the artist examines new means of deeper connection with their own family by conducting interviews with each of their parents. During the dialogue, they showed a series of videos depicting abstract interplays of light and shadows to each of their mother and father, asking two open-ended questions of “what do you see?” and “why do you say that?”. These short snippets were originally shot from metal and reflective sculptures reacting to light throughout time in the corner of the artist’s studio. However, the abstract nature of the videos depicted architectural or natural landscapes instigating a state of losing one’s sense of space. 

Their father's response to the video was formal descriptions of the light and shadows, along with specific memories and emotional stories tied to fear and nostalgia. His guess was that the videos were shot outside in natural scenery. “Like a person struggling so hard, water has covered his face and only his eyes are showing ” he responded to one part. 

In “and the alleyway to the prison’s garden”, Rostami built an interactive playground of light and shadows by employing movable geometric sculptures and mirror-like surfaces, based on their father’s perception of space. The objects in the installation were activated by a projector playing the same video shown during the interview. As the source of light moves on the sculptures, the reflections create ever-shifting light drawings. The reflected rays are materialized into fluid forms, emulating waves in an ocean or at times clouds.

 
Within a metaphorical construction, the artist changes the perception of space and navigates the traits of form - both fluid and structural - to negotiate the relationship between seemingly paradoxical concepts of the human state: stable versus uncertain, controlled versus unruled, and static versus fluid.

In summer 2018, Rostami conducted interviews with both their parents by asking them open-ended questions of what they see as they watched a video piece depicting spaces made of reflective materials, light and shadow. The audio fragments of their father’s voice in this piece is in response to the video above.