Shirana Shahbazi, New Commission Barbican Art Gallery, The Curve, through January 20, 2008 A striking new installation by Iranian born, Zurich based artist Shirana Shahbazi combines imagery from various genres of art, which she reproduces in dramatic wall paintings and digital photographic prints mounted on the 80 metre long wall of The Curve. Trained as a photographer, Shahbazi shoots images–including portraits, still lifes and landscapes–and often uses them as source material not only for photographs but also for paintings, billboards and handmade carpets. By altering the scale and transposing the imagery into a new medium or a style associated with another culture, she subverts viewers’ expectations and explores the complexity of identity. For her project in The Curve, Shahbazi collaborates with a team of Iranian billboard painters, employing techniques and styles typically used for commercial advertising in her native country. Barbican: The Curve