History Haunting the Present: Re-Interpreting the Truth in Contemporary Art of Iran

Keshmirshekan, Hamid

Abstract

This article examines the notions of history and memory with references to the works of contemporary artists from Iran. It interrogates the theme of challenging the present through the re-interpretation of history and investigates how artists respond to social, cultural and political conditions by creating a multi-faceted aesthetics of resistance. While looking at the broader subject of history and memory in contemporary Iran, the article scrutinises the works of artists who have been involved in themes such as the embodiment of cultural memory, concern for truth, historical record and intellectual reference to history to reflect the present. I adopt a hauntological interpretation when reading works of artists as it corresponds to their recurring references to the past to invoke an unsettling view of an imagined future.

Citation

Keshmirshekan, H. (2023). History Haunting the Present: Re-Interpreting the Truth in Contemporary Art of Iran. Arts, 12(2), 45. https://doi.org/10.3390/arts12020045

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Feb 20, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Feb 27, 2023
• Publication Date: Feb 27, 2023
• Deposit Date: Mar 6, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 6, 2023
• Journal: Arts
• Electronic ISSN: 2076-0752
• Publisher: MDPI
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 12
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 45
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/arts12020045
• Keywords: history; traumatic memory; contemporary art; cultural resistance; hauntology; participant history; Iranian political system
• Publisher URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0752/12/2/45