Exhibition

Morehshin Allahyari: South Ivan Human Heads

Duration

August 5, 2019 - October 17, 2019

Artists

Morehshin Allahyari

Events

Steiner Lecture Series: Morehshin Allahyari at STUDIO

Press Materials

Exhibition Press Release

South Ivan Human Heads are an extension of Allahyari’s Material Speculation: ISIS series. The heads in this series are reproductions of reliefs that were originally located at the ruins of Hatra, an ancient city in Iraq. Hatra was one of the ancient sites targeted by ISIS and in 2015 a video was released of a fighter shooting these heads with an AK-47. These heads were above ground and visible in ancient times. They survived for thousands of years in the open air. Each 3D printed sculpture contains a USB drive, which the viewer can connect to in order to download Morehshin’s openly available research material (images, maps, pdf files, and videos) in addition to the 3D printable object file of the piece King Uthal, one of the reconstructions from her Material Speculation: ISIS series.

This work simultaneously grapples with the reparative and destructive uses of technology in an ever increasingly networked and surveilled world. Her work investigates questions of how technology is used to create current political events, while restoring historical and cultural artifacts. At the heart of this work is an inquiry into the power of technological advances and how they can be used for generative or ruinous goals depending on the ethics of the individuals who deploy them. This is what Allahyari has called “Digital Colonialism”; a term which describes the tendency for information technologies to be deployed in ways that reproduce colonial power relations.

Morehshin Allahyari, South Ivan Human Heads: Bearded River God, 2017

This installation is part of a partnership between CMU’s K&L Gates Endowment for Ethics and Computational Technologies and the Miller Institute for Contemporary Art. This partnership advances public discourse around the ethical implications of AI and new ubiquitous technologies through an engagement with contemporary art.

Morehshin Allahyari was born and raised in Iran and moved to the United States in 2007. She is an artist, activist, educator, and an organizer. Her work deals with the political, social, and cultural contradictions we face every day. Morehshin has been part of numerous exhibitions, festivals, and workshops around the world including Venice Biennale di Archittectura, New Museum, The Whitney Museum of American Art, Pompidou Center, Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, Tate Modern, Queens Museum, Pori Museum, Powerhouse Museum, Dallas Museum of Art, and Museum für Angewandte Kunst. She is the recipient of the Leading Global Thinkers of 2016 Award by Foreign Policy magazine.

Morehshin Allahyari, South Ivan Human Heads: Young Boy, 2017

On view at CMU, College of Fine Arts, Great Hall
October 17, 5-6:15pm - Steiner Lecture Series: Morehshin Allahyari
Location: Frank-Ratchye STUDIO for Creative Inquiry, CMU CFA 111
Lecture presented by Frank-Ratchye STUDIO for Creative Inquiry, co-sponsored by Miller ICA.
This lecture is made possible by the Sylvia and David Steiner Speaker Series

Morehshin Allahyari: South Ivan Human Heads. Installation view. Photo: Margaret Cox.

Morehshin Allahyari: South Ivan Human Heads. Installation view. Photo: Margaret Cox.