Leila Nazarian: Mirrored Horizons

The Third Line is pleased to launch In the Viewing Room with Leila Nazarian’s presentation, Mirrored Horizons. This new series of single-artist presentations at The Third Line invites audiences to explore a curated selection of works in our upstairs viewing space. Each edition fosters dialogue and discovery, offering an intimate look at an artist’s vision through either a single work or a small body of work.

The skateboards feature rich geometric patterns, mirror mosaics, and motifs such as the “Flower and Nightingale” (Gol o Bolbol). For the first time, Nazarian includes imagery from her Californian roots, such as a palm tree from Santa Monica Beach. This fusion of cultural symbols embodies a harmonious yet surreal exchange, bridging the aesthetics of two distinct worlds.

The technical process behind her works is meticulous and deeply collaborative. The skateboards are produced in California, while their intricate designs are developed in Iran. Each piece is handcrafted with materials like wood, brass, metal, and camel bone,using the ancient Persian technique of inlaying or ‘Khatam-kari’ as it’s called. The geometric patterns alone take a month to produce, followed by several weeks to shape and assemble the final pieces. 

Her recent exploration of ‘Āina-kāri’, another traditional Iranian craft of mirror mosaics, adds a reflective, luminous quality to her works, enhancing their visual complexity and depth.

Through Mirrored Horizons., Nazarian recontextualizes traditional Iranian art forms, infusing them with contemporary sensibilities and personal narratives. Her works prompt viewers to engage with these exquisite forms of craftsmanship with renewed curiosity, celebrating the dialogue between tradition and modernity. By merging the functional and the artistic, Nazarian offers new meanings and identities through her innovative process, bridging cultural divides and redefining the role of craft in today’s artistic landscape.