Ala Ebtekar: Nowheresville

The Third Line presents Nowheresville, a solo show of the American-based visual artist Ala Ebtekar.

Nowheresville is journey to/through Light.
In the Illuminations cosmogony, Suhrawardi imagines a First Light, the Light of Lights, who decides to adorn the Firmaments. It sends out a ray of light from which the Nine Spheres radiate into existence. Man lives on the Ninth Sphere in the Sensible Realm, close to Darkness. Many have forgotten the Light, but there are a few who seek it out. The Light of Lights is unallocated in Nowheresville, the Abode of Simurgh, Qaf, untouched by time and space. The journey is long; the first step is to shut the eyes and see. Inspired by this cosmogony, Ebtekar imagines different steps of this journey to/through Light. Every piece hides a forest of symbols that reveal themselves to the seeing subject. Every opening becomes a portal to Nakoja that gazes back and is waiting to be discovered. Ebtekar invites us to use our eyes to make the journey atop of Qaf and maybe have a fleeting/flashing glance at Nowheresville.

Ala Ebtekar (b. 1978, Iran) is a visual artist who lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. Ebtekar is known primarily for his work in painting, drawing, and installation that explores the juncture between history and myth, forging a multi-faceted project that melds Persian mythology, science, philosophy and pop culture together.