Opening on 22nd November 2019
On view until 8th December 2019

The world around us is an interaction of diverse spectra. While each spectrum has its own meaning, next to each other, they find a new character and illustrate the influence of meaning and identity of the other. As a part of this spectra, we connect with the whole universe, the cosmos, and the phenomenon of life. In the meantime, we can directly observe the interrelation between these fragments and ourselves. All these observations and connectivity take shape within the context of time.

Time at any second and at any location creates a different image, and, as an abstract concept, the forms resolve and dissolve these layers of spectra. The landscapes we perceive are the result of multiple layering in time, with each layer carrying a wide range of data and information across the span of time- from the past to the future- and their impact on each other creates the images that we ultimately encounter.
In this series of works, Cosmos, as part of a wide range of spectra, has an abstract meaning too. The intertwined forms, the silence, and the vacuum all create subjective abstract images which form the common linear patterns of our visual experience of nature and the world around us. We have a sense of association and seemingly emotional connection to the cosmos, but where does this sense of deep connection come from?

I’m searching for the origins of these connections in science and expressing my ideas through art by combining different mediums. Searching for these concepts and visualizing them next to my lived experiences makes up my consciousness, a fluid and dynamic world, moving towards a kind of abstraction with a heavy load of layered data.
In the book, A Universe from Nothing, Lawrence M.Krauss writes: Every atom in your body came from a star that exploded. And, the atoms in your left hand probably came from a different star than your right hand. It is the most poetic thing I know about physics: You are all stardust.

All this data creates an extensive network of connections, so all the elements are intertwined in this global puzzle structure. In this series, I have extracted and studied pieces of this puzzle. Ultimately I have compiled a summary of my observations and connection with the world around me in a small format. Connected Spectra narrates my personal experiences in encountering nature and the connections that have taken shape in this personal domain.

Maryam Farshad