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Ali Meamar: Meamorphism

Ali Meamar builds paintings the way memories form: in layers, with earlier experiences visible beneath present moments.

The Iranian-American artist began his formal training in Italy, where he mastered the demanding techniques of classical fresco, a medium that requires speed, precision, and irreversible commitment. While still a student, he began exhibiting his work. His career has since expanded across Europe and the United States, with paintings shown in contemporary art fairs, galleries, and curated exhibitions in Switzerland, France, and throughout America.

But Meamar didn't stop with traditional methods. He developed a distinctive process that merges his classical training with contemporary mixed-media practice. He photographs his completed frescoes, prints these images onto wood panels, and then paints over them. The result is a visual palimpsest: surfaces where multiple timeframes coexist, where past work becomes the foundation for new creation.

He calls this approach Meamorphism, a term that describes both technique and philosophy. The word suggests transformation, metamorphosis, the constant evolution of form and meaning. In Meamar's paintings, nothing is truly buried or lost. Earlier images persist beneath new layers, creating depth that reveals itself slowly, rewarding sustained attention.

This is where Meamar's concept of "intangible senses" becomes central. While traditional painting addresses sight (light, color, form), Meamar reaches for what can't be directly seen but can be felt: harmony, motion, temperature, the emotional weight of specific colors, the rhythm created by layered surfaces.

Each painting operates on multiple levels simultaneously. The visible surface presents one image. Beneath it, traces of earlier work create undertones, echoes, complications. The interaction between these layers generates something that neither surface could produce alone: a visual experience that shifts with viewing distance, changes in light, and the viewer's willingness to look beyond initial impressions.

Jan 2nd - Jan 30th 2026
Reception: Sun Jan 18th 2-4pm