Nejad Devrim: Un Soleil Perdu Dans l’Orage

Nejad Devrim often signed the lower left corner of his works. Though initially using “Nejad Melih”, he is best known for his Frenchized signature “Néjad”, with a distinguishing accent aigu over the letter “e”, or simply his surname’s initial, a curved lower case “n”. It wasn’t uncommon for the artist to include the name of a city beside his signature. He sometimes incorporated dates or numerals as well, occasionally in a hyphenated format, such as 3-1975, which might indicate March of the year 1975 or refer to a series or a succession of paintings.

The exhibition titled “Un Soleil Perdu Dans L'orage”, is conceived as a chromatic exercise, inspired by the principles of Google Image Search, and stands as a homage, commemorating Devrim’s contributions. His focus on the iconic landmarks of the cities he has visited allows us to recognize and name some of them. The remaining works are repositioned within Nejad’s geographical landscape through the imagination and analogies constructed by Galeri Nev’s curators.

On view until the November 25th, the exhibition also includes the painting “Istanbul” by Eda Gecikmez, nestled among Nejad Devrim’s cities. As a nod to outstanding actors who appear in small and silent roles in movies, Galeri Nev will host a “cameo” in each exhibition throughout 2023-2024, reflecting the gallery’s commitment to explore the overlaps between different generations, inquiries and techniques.