Arash Shovieri Exhibition "Echoes of the Human Condition"

Arash Shovieri Exhibition "Echoes of the Human Condition"

Opening Reception

October 8, 5 - 7 p.m.

On View

October 8 - November 20, 2026

Location

The Center for Arts & Media

South City Campus

1575 S. 200 E.

Salt Lake City

In his solo exhibition Echoes of The Human Condition, Arash Shovieri’s huge, surreal oil paintings breathe with so much life and mystery, you may find yourself physically arrested as you attempt to decode the visual stories on display. These marvelous tableaus feature archetypal, and possibly supernatural figures from various historical and geographic contexts. By presenting them alongside modern-day technologies, Shoveiri invites us to explore timeless themes like our shared histories, our shared futures, and to grapple with powerful forces and alien intelligences beyond the realms of our limited human comprehension. Giant stone figures reminiscent of Meso-American Gods grin at us while wearing blinders reminiscent of VR googles as connective cables disappear into the sky, linking to a higher power and, more importantly, disconnecting the monolithic golems from the realities presented around them. Whether in familiar looking deserts that may be the southwestern United States or the Middle East, or in modern cityscapes, Shoveiri’s figures connect with the viewer in a strangely familiar way, while seeming to break space and time as ancient icons collide with the new religions of our current time: the capture and peddling of our attentions, the all-powerful internet, and Artificial Intelligence as its meteoric evolution transforms our daily lives.

Born in Iran, Shoveiri taught design at Tehran Artists’ House (2007–08) and participated in Tehran Painters Association group exhibitions. From 2008-10, he created a children’s animated series for Iranian TV at Gol Agha Publishing House. He also served as creator and character designer for the stop-motion short Objects Are Closer to You Than What You See in the Mirror, which won first prize at the Tehran Animation Festival.

After eight years in Europe, he relocated to the United States, where he produces new paintings inspired by antiquities, utilizing techniques spanning Realism, Impressionism, Surrealism, and Symbolism.