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Mani Mazinani


Mani Mazinani was born in Tehran in 1984, now lives and works in Toronto. He studied at the University of Toronto, specialized in contemporary art and ancient philosophy. Mazinani makes artworks in multiple media including installation, video, film, photography, painting, printmaking, multiples, sound and music. His work directs attention to the physicality and logic of his subject medium. His current research interests include origins of ancient philosophical thought, perceptual limitations of humans and Hip Hop culture.

His work has been shown in North America, Europe and Asia. His Light Air (2010) was featured in a two-person show with Michael Snow for the Luminato Festival, Screen Scene and Oracle (2011) were the subject of a solo show at Vtape and most recently a large scale sound installation, Anciently Heard (2015) was commissioned by Scotiabank Nuit Blanche. He has received various awards and including grants from the Toronto Arts Council, Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts. His composed and improvised music is regularly performed in concert.

Mani Mazinani, Division, sculptural installation work made of wood, steel fabric and concrete, 2016

Division is a sculptural installation work made of wood, steel fabric and concrete. The forms in its composition are a visual interpretation of structural elements of the I Ching. Specifically, the eight trigrams (Bagua) in derivation of the duality in nature (Yin and Yang) which points to the universal oneness (Taiji). The construction of the piece is based on traditional woodworking techniques.  In human history, wood was the first material to reveal that the inner structure of things is accessible through manipulation. Division magnifies the perceptual process by defining divisions between sight and thought.  It acts as a lens between the world that we see with our eyes and the world that we see with our minds.