| Singer
Island artist Reza says the technique for his most recent body of work was
conceived in a dream. Some of the seven-foot paintings are colorful, often
striking and highly detailed, larger than-life floral. In others, his
medium is white paint, sheet metal fabricated to resemble painters' canvas
- and lead bullets. The two approaches seem diametrically opposed, but Reza
believes they both "depict life." And, they lend the series
its name, "Guns and Roses."
The bullets were incorporated into
the paintings in a dramatic fashion. Reza placed dots in strategic spots
on his works, then instructed a West Palm Beach professional sharpshooter
to fire at the minuscule targets, completing the work.
"It just doesn't seem that much
like art," marksman Court Swett told a Sun Sentinel writer
last June. "But what do I know? I just shoot for a living."
Reza's previous series,
"Chocolates and Flowers, also featured flower paintings - inspired by
a trip to the Netherlands. Those flower works were hung side-by-side with vast acrylic
paintings of chocolate: a candy bar, a fudgey cake, a spill of M&Ms,
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an Oreo. (The latter was reported to have been purchased by Nabisco.)
While the Guns and Roses technique
came from a dream, Reza draws inspiration from his past. His earliest
memories are sounds of revolutionary gunfire heard in his native Iran.
Thus, this latest series recalls that gunfire.
He says the Chocolates and Flowers
series originated with fond recollections of his Persian childhood.
Returning from business trips abroad, his father would present him
with colorfully-wrapped U.S. treats.
Reza's artistic abilities were
recognized when he was a child. His family and the middle eastern cultural
milieu from which he came demanded he follow a more traditional route. At
the behest of his parents, he came to the United States to study
engineering. Reza stayed on to become a citizen and an artist.
"Fire" is 36 by 21 inches
Reza, with one of his more recent paintings
"Guns
and Roses" can be seen by appointment only.
Editor's notes: Don't
be put off (as I was) by the artist's adoption of the name of a pop group
for his most recent series. The unfortunate title is distracting but don't
let it dissuade you from seeing Reza's work. In South Florida Contact
Deirdre Sykes, 407-655-4827, for information.
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