Portfolio > Seven moments of the olive tree

Seven moments of the olive tree (2018)

All works are black and white digital prints, hand-coloured with pencils and silk screen print on paper
68 x 35 cm each
2 editions

Photography: Robert Frith, Acorn Photo

In the project Seven moments of the olive tree, I photographed my neighbour’s olive tree at a specific time of the day for seven days. As I did this, I took a moment to recite a Persian version of Federico Garcia Lorca’s poem and remembered a time when I also recited Lorca’s poems in my hometown of Tehran.
Here in my backyard in Perth, my neighbour’s olive tree takes my mind to the memories of the past and my imagination to Granada. I recall images of Granada where Lorca lived and studied literature, and where he composed poems about a city with two flowing rivers surrounded by large olive trees.
Created using the intricate screen-printing technique, this project is a visual interpretation of Lorca’s poetry. The seven individual works are drawn from my memories of reading Lorca’s poetry translated by Persian poet Ahmad Shamlou in Tehran. At the same time, each work metaphorically reflects a new space where two different cultures and languages are encountered. The combination of the olive tree and the Persian version of Lorca’s poetry become influential motifs to visualise memories, inspirations and act as reminders of cultural encounters.