Morteza Pourhosseini on Nature, Censorship, and the Unfinished Book

Iranian artist Morteza Pourhosseini discusses his practice of collecting and scientifically cataloguing nature, his series Unfinished Book, Before the Fall, In-Between, and Quandary, and how covering faces with foliage addresses censorship in Iran. He studied painting at university and has always been drawn to the medium. Unfinished Book (2019–ongoing) combines repurposed old book covers with scientific plant drawings and Arabic names, featuring details of well-known photos of wars, revolutions, or discoveries instead of titles. Before the Fall (2016–20) is inspired by Masaccio's c.1425 fresco Expulsion from the Garden of Eden and depicts figures caught in the moment before being expelled from heaven. Wounds in his paintings reference stigmata and critique social injustices and oppressive systems. Covering faces with plants invites viewers to contemplate hidden identity and gender, and serves as a response to censorship in Iran. In-Between series places subjects in undefined, unstable situations between doubt and certainty, reflecting his view that nothing is certain. He collects plants from his travels, including his childhood in Ahvaz, Iran, and now in Belfast, where he studies northern nature. The interview appears in Canvas 108: The Root of It All.