TEHRAN -- Veteran Iranian modern artist Parviz Tanavoli, mostly famous for his sculpture series “Heech” (meaning “nil” in Persian), unveiled his first artist’s book entitled “Things and Nothings” during a ceremony in Tehran on Friday.

Art expert Alireza Sami-Azari, culture minister advisor Hossein Kazemi and a large number of art enthusiasts attended the ceremony that held at Tehran’s Art Center.

The book, which has been produced in a limited edition, contains prints of Tanavoli’s works created during the various periods of his art career spanning over a half century.

In a brief speech, Sami-Azari said, “Modernism faces two types of responses in its arrival in Iran; some people neither acknowledged it nor gave it a warm welcome.”

“Other people totally accepted modernism and have tried to created works based on it.

“These artists did their best to merge elements from Iranian culture and art with modernism to create an Iranian modernism.

“Tanavoli not only acknowledged modernism but also showed ways to make the transition from it; this was his great achievement.

“His semantic ability led him in a way to create sculptures with conceptual schemes, for example his series ‘Heech’.”

Tanavoli autographed some copies of “Things and Nothings”, which were sold at 150 million rials (over $4,100).

Copies of the book will be on display in an exhibition at the center until November 8.

Photo: Veteran Iranian sculptor Parviz Tanavoli autographs a copy of his first artist’s book “Things and Nothings” at Tehran’s Art Center on November 4, 2016. (Honaronline/Mojtaba Arabzadeh)

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