Alireza Varzandeh

Alireza Varzandeh is a Cologne-based, contemporary painter. He was born in Persia, 1963. He strives to represent scenes from everyday life in his work. By use of extreme close-ups the interesting customs of society become visible: beach scenes, cyclists in traffic… No subject is unworthy of painting.

His working process is somewhat like adjusting the focus of a camera lens. The motifs of the paintings are abstractedly sketched, applied in more detail in oil paint, and painted over again, which creates a more objective view.

The result is an almost blurred subject that seems vibrating in texture. These paintings don’t depict a single moment: they are filled in by participation of the viewer and his or hers personal experiences. Only by moving around the painting, the distance is created to experience the entire interplay of light and colour. Varzandeh is greatly influenced by the use of light in Rembrandt’s paintings and those of the Impressionists as well.