10 Questions with Hushang Omidizadeh

Al-Tiba9 Art Magazine ISSUE14 | Featured Artist

Hushang Omidizadeh, born in 1968, is a multidisciplinary artist based in Germany. He studied Art & Visual Communication/Design in Munich and worked as an Artist & Art Director. His greatest passion is painting and photography. Creativity, experimental ways of thinking, forms, and compositions in painting, photography & design influence his artistic works. He plays with structures, strong contrasts, light and shadow, good and evil, black and white, movement and stillness. His paintings are emotional expressions of the moment. He creates visuals using everything from acrylics and ink to photography and collage, merging analog and digital techniques to break the boundaries between different visual art forms.

His work has been exhibited, among others, at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Beijing (China, 2015), at Villa Artista (Hannover, Germany, 2015), IF International Forum Design (Germany, 2010 and 2014), at the International Design Awards "IDA" in Los Angeles (USA, 2013), for the DDC, ADC, German Design Award, and NYPL, NewYorkPublicLibrary (NYC, USA, 2000).

He has been published in Kavyar, Marika Magazine, Matte Magazine, Massive Lifestyle, Nasty Magazine, and Vogue Germany.

hushang-omidizadeh.com | @hushangomidizadeh

ARTIST STATEMENT

In his art, Hushang Omidizadeh delves into diverse facets of human nature, interpersonal relationships, diversity, and human needs.

His paintings focus on the invisible, seeking to capture the essence of humanity itself rather than the surroundings or abstract representations of reality.

To achieve this, he deliberately reduces color and medium.

Surface | Project Statement

In his series "SURFACE," the artist abandons the use of traditional brushes and instead directly applies color to his models' bodies. These colors are then transferred onto the canvas when pressed, leaving imprints of the models' own bodies. These imprints represent the unadorned truth of their identity, emphasizing a raw and authentic portrayal of the human form.

Hushang has been continuously working on the Surface series for over 10 years, and his latest works were created in July of this year. He sometimes uses large-format paper or canvas for this purpose.

INTERVIEW

First of all, let's talk about your background. Could you tell us more about yourself and how you began making art?

My entire life has always been and continues to be in motion, shaped by shifts and changes, both in location and personally. This means that I have been exposed to constant changes since my earliest years.
I was born in Iran into a family where my father was a renowned and successful jewelry designer - a free spirit with a profound passion for aesthetics. From a young age, I left my family and my homeland and have been on the move ever since. I must have started painting and drawing as a small child. My childhood was strongly influenced by numerous challenging personal, familial, and political events and traumas. Over the years, I partially suppressed some of these incidents, causing that time to be now hazy and fragmented in my memory.
However, what is certain is that "Art: Painting" has always been my steadfast companion and my way of expressing and processing my emotions, thoughts, anger, and sorrow. It was both my salvation and refuge.
I never felt the need for a physical home. I felt at home when I was painting. This has remained almost unchanged to this day. A fixed residence as a homeland is not necessary for me, which is why I live like a nomad.

When did you decide to become an artist? And what do you wish you knew about contemporary art before you got started?

I've never really thought about what I want to do or become. I've always known that I would be an artist. The visual world - from painting to design - has consistently been my realm. I opted for studies in visual communication and design, worked as an Art Director, and simultaneously dedicated a lot of time to painting, drawing, and photography. Contemporary art has always held a strong fascination for me, and I continue to engage with it intensively to this day. In recent years, my art has become my primary pursuit and focus. At times, I wish I had known how challenging it can be to make a living solely from art.

You primarily work with large-scale paintings, although you do not use traditional techniques. What does this medium represent for you? And why did you choose a painting in the first place?

Even as a child, I possessed the talent to draw and paint realistically and classically, following traditional techniques, quite proficiently. Over the years, I increasingly felt the need to simplify my painting to its essence.
This essence consequently entails relinquishing minutiae, setting aside classical, traditional painting, and letting intuitive moments of emotion flow freely - not concerning myself with details but only perceiving the grandeur. This way, I can strongly focus on my subject. And for this, there's a requirement of space, room, and improvisation. Therefore, I often work on large formats with ample breathing space, which I truly enjoy. In the execution, I often omit intermediary steps to distill the outcome to its core. Hence, the brush is no longer my tool; the subject itself becomes the conduit - direct and unmediated. I've always been able to express myself best through images and convey my emotions. Painting has consistently been my most potent means for this purpose.

Let's talk about your creative process. Where do you draw inspiration from nowadays?

I have an eventful life behind me. I've traveled extensively and seen a lot. Therefore, I'm always interested - whether intentionally or unintentionally - in societal, political, and social matters. People and their social environments inspire me, creative thoughts and activities inspire me, and current topics of our world, like human rights, individual freedom, injustice, oppression, violence, and other subjects, interest me.
Sometimes, I need to walk through bustling and urban cities and interact with people. In doing so, I absorb a lot: colors, shapes, scents, and sounds. But sometimes, it's the opposite: I require the calm and ambiance of my studio to visualize my thoughts. Undoubtedly, it's the human being with all their facets that intrigues and inspires me.

What is your artistic routine when working? Could you walk us through a day in your studio?

Indeed, I lack a consistent routine in my work process (as well as in my life). Sometimes, I sit for hours or even days, just sketching around without a specific goal. On occasion, I play with colors, materials, and shapes, and sometimes I sketch ideas on paper or canvas. I particularly enjoy prepping my painting backgrounds in advance, infusing them with colors and textures. These painting backgrounds sometimes evolve over several days. And always, I have music accompanying me.
Every now and then, I also continue working on my computer in between, reviewing my digital concepts, sketching on the screen, or experimenting with things. Afterward, I often discard numerous sketches and thoughts, set them aside, and quickly forget about them. Yet at times, this process leads me to my next ideas and sets the stage for my work process.
As I require models for the Surface series, I coordinate my schedule with my models and plan accordingly for when we'll start.

Your series Surface, which you have been developing for over ten years, is a rather peculiar work. To realize the pairings, you ditched the brushes and used the models' bodies instead. How did you develop this concept?

The focus in my work has always been and continues to be on the human being. In my earlier works, I depicted the human body figuratively. Over the years, I increasingly wanted to show the essence of the human as a being - without details.
To precisely convey this in my work, I eventually came up with the idea of representing only the imprints of our bodies and no longer the external, the face, the details. And I can achieve this most effectively using the body of the model, directly and immediately.
In the beginning, I had imagined the execution to be simpler. However, it turned out that transferring the body imprints onto the painting surface is not as straightforward. For this, the model and I had to experiment and try things out for some time. Because of this, my work process can often appear amusing. It's not the model imprinting their body onto the painting surface; rather, the painting surface is imprinted onto the model's body. This is how I achieve the best results. In doing so, I sometimes use paper, and other times, canvas as the painting background.

The use of the human body reminds me of Yves Klein, but the outcome is rather different, as you use muted and natural colors. What messages do you ultimately want to convey with your work?

First and foremost, all of my painting backgrounds are meticulously crafted over an extended period, meticulously layered with color and textures, resulting in unique characters that exude a highly organic quality. Furthermore, I purposefully choose colors in my works that reveal and naturally represent the human body more profoundly.
The focus in my work has always been and continues to be on the human being. The primary message in my Surface series is this: Despite our external differences as human beings and our distinct appearances, fundamentally, we are all very similar. Regardless of how people look, all human beings share the same basic needs. This holds true regardless of origin, gender, skin color, appearance, orientation, abilities, and societal position. We are all human and leave traces behind.
To convey precisely this in my work, I eventually came up with the idea of representing only the imprints of our bodies and no longer the external features, the face, or the details - directly and unmediated. In doing so, I consciously seek out various types of individuals as models who visually differ significantly from one another. Yet, the end result is consistently akin.

Do you plan to develop this series further? And what would you like to incorporate, or where would you like it to go?

Yes, I intend to continue working intensively on this series in the future and expand it further. Furthermore, I have the desire to organize large-scale painting events where many people are simultaneously involved in creating oversized artworks. With this series, I aim to progress, present it in public spaces, and engage a multitude of individuals interactively. Hence, I strive to gain the opportunity to collaborate more frequently with cities, organizations, associations, and art galleries in order to realize my ideas more often and present them to a wide audience all around the world.

Speaking of the future, do you have any upcoming shows or publications you would like to share with our readers?

I have a few things in the works, but unfortunately, nothing concrete yet. Next, I'm planning to publish a book featuring my works and organize more exhibitions. I also hope for more collaboration with galleries and publishers. I'll share the updates on my Instagram channel when there's something new.

And finally, where do you see yourself and your art five years from now?

Actually, I don't plan for more than six months ahead, but I do set goals for my artistic journey. I will continue to remain artistically active, painting, creating new pieces, and consistently showcasing my works. On a personal level, I will keep moving and changing my living environment. It has always been that way, and it will remain so. So, I don't know where I'll be in 5 years, but I do know that I'll stay creatively engaged.

Artist’s Talk

Al-Tiba9 Interviews is a promotional platform for artists to articulate their vision and engage them with our diverse readership through a published art dialogue. The artists are interviewed by Mohamed Benhadj, the founder & curator of Al-Tiba9, to highlight their artistic careers and introduce them to the international contemporary art scene across our vast network of museums, galleries, art professionals, art dealers, collectors, and art lovers across the globe.