Bio
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Narges Porsandekhial (she/her) is an emerging Persian polydisciplinary creator and writer with a BA in Handicrafts and an MFA from University of Saskatchewan. Her work spans installation, socially engaged practices, public art, text-based projects, and research-creation. She has exhibited her work both nationally and internationally and also serves as a cultural worker. Narges explores the repetition of daily life activities through conceptual and social lenses, addressing mental health issues and engaging in institutional critique. Her work centres on repetition as both a tactile and methodical process, offering refuge from life’s uncertainties through a ritualistic approach to art-making. Drawing inspiration from the feminist practice of Autotheory, Narges tries to address the “uncomfortable” by sharing intimate thoughts in public spaces. Influenced by Michel de Certeau’s The Practice of Everyday Life, Narges captures the passage of time and the significance of mundane, ordinary moments through repetitive writing, journaling, and carefully crafted series of handmade objects such as small-scale monuments for non-human beings. In repetition, there are no surprises—only anticipation and comfort, creating a sacred rhythm where its navigation is already known. |
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Narges /'nærges/ (نرگس) in English equals Narcissus/Daffodils.
In Farsi, it's also a metaphor for the drunken eyes of a lover.
Porsandekhial (Porsande + Khial) is a compound word, meaning someone who seeks imagination.
Porsande: Someone who questions and wonders. | Khial: Imagination
Artist Statement
While it could be implied that everything has been said before, we still yearn to find new ways to enter into conversation and address key concerns and concepts anew. It is particularly this repetition that both bores and excites me. In seeking a connection within the repetition of daily life, I aim to create a familiar condition that welcomes anyone, regardless of their positionality. I believe that art should not be exclusive, a luxurious object or activity that only a certain group can relate to. It is undeniable that I will always have a personal narrative that may be best executed in a white cube gallery space – I welcome that side of my works with open arms. But my main area of focus and interest at this time is to enter the realm of social. In their emphasis on the importance of access to art, socially engaged practices and public art best serve my intentions. Through removing any physical or monetary barrier to the experience of art, these fields often exist beyond institutions and invite the new relationships I seek in the repositioning of the mundane and everyday.
In my practice, the extrarational process of developing an idea determines the most suitable material and medium, varying from installation to text-based work, mixed media, and/or social practices. What fascinates me most is creating the conditions for an experience to happen by removing the artist’s direct presence in the artwork, while focusing on interpersonal/intrapersonal interactions, social and political practices, and mental health issues, each as a form of inherent institutional critique.
By sharing intimate thoughts in public spaces, I welcome the audience to be a part of an open-ended experience where they have the freedom to communicate back, or simply observe and walk away. For most of my works, there are hidden clues that initiate a conversation - whether explicit or implicit. It is the participation of the audience and their presence that completes my projects. A piece which does not necessarily have a physical representation or even a consistent status in its documentation, but exists in memory and is disseminated through stories people share. I strive to make art that addresses everyone in its commonality, engenders feelings of belonging, of the communal, and ultimately, if successful acts therapeutic. This overt intention to enact an ethics of care within my artistic practice is rooted in my desire for connection at a time of displacement and disruption. It is not intended to homogenize experiences but to seek out and lay bare the minute sparks of connection that simply must be there in the mundane repetitions we witness across geography, cultures, place, and time.
In my practice, the extrarational process of developing an idea determines the most suitable material and medium, varying from installation to text-based work, mixed media, and/or social practices. What fascinates me most is creating the conditions for an experience to happen by removing the artist’s direct presence in the artwork, while focusing on interpersonal/intrapersonal interactions, social and political practices, and mental health issues, each as a form of inherent institutional critique.
By sharing intimate thoughts in public spaces, I welcome the audience to be a part of an open-ended experience where they have the freedom to communicate back, or simply observe and walk away. For most of my works, there are hidden clues that initiate a conversation - whether explicit or implicit. It is the participation of the audience and their presence that completes my projects. A piece which does not necessarily have a physical representation or even a consistent status in its documentation, but exists in memory and is disseminated through stories people share. I strive to make art that addresses everyone in its commonality, engenders feelings of belonging, of the communal, and ultimately, if successful acts therapeutic. This overt intention to enact an ethics of care within my artistic practice is rooted in my desire for connection at a time of displacement and disruption. It is not intended to homogenize experiences but to seek out and lay bare the minute sparks of connection that simply must be there in the mundane repetitions we witness across geography, cultures, place, and time.