Though Amir H. Fallah’s works are considered portraits, they are also careful investigations of geometry and texture. The LA-based artist’s paintings apprehend the seemingly dichotomous notions of East and West, blending iconic imagery from Middle Eastern and American cultures into an indistinguishable amalgamation of shape and color. Fallah, who also has an extensive found-object sculpture portfolio, focuses on the form rather than function of his subject matter, turning human figures and familiar objects into design elements that work with abstract shapes in the compositions.
Fallah currently has a show at The Third Line in Dubai titled “The Collected,” on view through January 23. The exhibition consists of pre-sold, commissioned portraits. But rather than executing the will of the sitter, like the portraits wealthy families traditionally commissioned throughout art history to glorify themselves, Fallah flipped the script. He took control of how his subjects were presented, arranging their valuable possessions in still life-like hodgepodges and subsuming each sitter’s individual identity in ornate fabrics. Take a look at some of Fallah’s recent paintings below.