Lajevardi Foundation

Exhibition of Works by Mohsen Sadeghian
Curate by Pooya Aryanpour

Mohsen Sadeghian’s monumental floating mountains challenged perceptions of nature and construction. These suspended forms, massive yet weightless, blurred the lines between landscapes shaped by time and those molded by human intervention. Drawing inspiration from the Anthropocene, Sadeghian’s work reflected the profound impact of humanity on the natural world. Their shimmering surfaces, crafted from papier-mâché, echoed microplastics and industrial waste, transforming the sublime grandeur of nature into a raw commentary on environmental degradation.

Far from idyllic, these mountains exposed their article, revealing the skeletons of their construction. Their empty spaces recalled the spiritual balance of Shan Shui paintings but replaced tranquility with tension, confronting viewers with the paradox of human-altered landscapes. As artifacts of a constructed world, Sadeghian’s mountains stripped nature of its untouched mystique and reimagined it as a layered narrative, part natural, part industrial, and fully under construction. Suspended in tension between fullness and emptiness, they served as both a tribute to nature’s power and a stark reminder of humanity’s lasting imprint on the environment.

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The Other Path
Mohsen Sadeghian (1970 – 2024): Painter, sculptor, and art teacher. He is one of those ar sts
who have traversed the strange and incredible world of the 1960s. He le behind a family that
was in a different atmosphere, experienced the art university of the 1970s, and there he found
professors, friends, and companions who changed the course of his life. He is a remarkable
example of an ar st with a personal and dis nc ve demeanor. During a period, Mohsen spent
most of his me crea ng “boxes.” These boxes possess a mysterious and enigma c quality,
resembling a world where discerning their contents, rela onships, and meanings is not simple.
The boxes can be seen as a prelude to his later works in recycled art. His works from the late
1980s take on a documentary quality, prominently featuring a en on to poli cal events and
expressing clear cri cisms of social living condi ons. Mohsen’s character led him to dedicate
many years of his life to teaching art. His different perspec ve on the ar st’s persona, combined
with slow and con nuous ac vi es, caused him to distance himself from mainstream trends
while quietly focusing on personal interests, being somewhat less ac ve and directed toward his
own preferences. Living and working in two studios in Lavasan and Jajroud inspired Mohsen’s
later works, which he called “mountains.” These works are unique, large-scale volumes made
en rely from recycled materials. The mountains can be seen as products of a period when
Mohsen was immersed in the natural environment of Central Alborz. Daily life and travel along
the mountainous roads of this region have had a profound impact on his work. The rela onship
between humans and mountains is ancient and mul-dimensional. In many cultures around the
world, mountains are considered sacred places, inter sec ons of earth and sky, and abodes of
dei es. In myths and legends, mountains are the sources of primordial waters and mothers of
fer lity; people ascend to mountains in search of gods, solitude, or immortality. A journey to
the mountain symbolizes reaching higher realms and ascending to the sublime and limitless. For
this reason, mountains embody images of eternity, permanence, and stability. Mountains are
vital components of the biosphere and play a central role in pro viding fresh water and
sustaining ecosystems that significantly affect the quality of life for millions on Earth. However,
in environmental issues compared to oceans and forests, mountains receive less a en on.
Mohsen’s focus on these ecological centers in his later works reflects his environmental
concerns as he engages with these prominent natural phenomena. The mountain symbolizes
humanity’s desire for freedom and life in nature. Mohsen Sadeghian’s mountains express a
visual resistance—perhaps even stubbornness— against the rapid changes and bewildering
aspects of the modern world. From another perspec ve, they offer an alterna ve path for
contemporary human life that invites reflec on on environmental crises and the future of our
planet.
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