London Calling Tehran

London Calling Tehran, a portfolio of work by seventeen London based artists, was presented in 7samar Gallery, Tehran. This was the first non-commercial visual art exchange between UK and Iran for decades. In compiling that show we aimed to initiate a modest exploration of the similarities and differences between our respective cities and the cultures they nurture. Tehran Calling London, a portfolio of work by twenty-two Iranian artists, is a fascinating response that reveals hidden facets of a complex society balanced between theocratic regulation, material consumerism and the search for personal and group identities. Tehran’s artists employ imaginative visual and organisational strategies to create and distribute their work through underground and public networks. This portfolio, curated by Tarlan Rafiee and Yashar Samimi, offers a tantalising and unique glimpse into that world. The two portfolios London Calling Tehran & Tehran Calling London are exhibited together at londonprintstudio and will be available as a touring exhibition from June 2013