Untitled 1997

Editor: This is an untitled oil on canvas piece by Manoucher Yektai, painted in 1997. I’m immediately struck by how textural it is, and how that layering of paint almost obscures the figure. What do you see in this work? Curator: Well, the figure with the hat, almost submerged, carries a quiet symbolic weight. The layers you mention visually bury this person. What do these applications of thick paint remind you of? Editor: They're sort of like masks, built up over time? Curator: Precisely. Think about portraiture across different cultures. What does it mean to create a representation of someone and then bury it beneath a mass of abstract paint? We're dealing with a push and pull between revealing and concealing. The hat could suggest the subject wants to obscure or hide parts of themselves. And look at the muted palette. How does that play into the reading of this piece? Editor: It definitely adds to the somber mood. Were there specific symbols Yektai was known to use in his work? Curator: While not overtly symbolic, Yektai often dealt with themes of memory and identity. The way the paint is applied, almost violently in places, can be read as the marks left by time, trauma, or lived experience on the individual. This can apply to both how others perceive us and to how we perform in life or what we seek to conceal. How does this idea sit with you? Editor: It makes me think about the struggle to define ourselves. That maybe the 'true' self is buried under layers of expectation, or even personal experiences. Curator: Exactly. Perhaps the struggle itself is what Yektai intended to capture. A frozen image of the subject at one point of many, unable to make progress beyond their point of experience. It offers a window into a state of ongoing construction of the self. Editor: It's fascinating how a painting that seems abstract can be so psychologically charged. I'll definitely see Yektai's work differently now. Curator: It is more than abstract: this reveals the cultural memory and continuity through visual symbols, informed by psychology. It highlights how identity, personal experiences and our emotional wellbeing affect all.