DIFC hosts designer-artist Banafsheh Hemmati’s debut solo show in October

Independent designer-artist Banafsheh Hemmati opens her first solo exhibition in the UAE from October 9 – 31 in Satellite Gallery, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). Held in collaboration with DIFC, the exhibition, titled Body Geometry, presents a collection of the Tehran-based artist’s wearable jewellery and sculptures, where the two disciplines enter into a living dialogue with each other.

The show, which is open to the public, explores the relationship between body, space and geometry, and is positioned at the intersection of art, design, and philosophy. Body Geometry invites the viewer to experience the connection between the human body and geometric form in a fresh way, and also reveals the design process of the artist.

The exhibition follows Hemmati’s participation in Dubai Design Week and two editions of the DIFC Sculpture Park. All works in her collection are derived from the redefinition of three foundational forms of Islamic geometry. The aim is to unlock the formal and conceptual potentials of the geometry and reimagine it as a new language that can bring the East and West closer together through visual expression.

The exhibition reveals how a single geometric form can unfold into a diverse set of works. In contrast to Islamic philosophy, which traditionally moves from multiplicity towards unity, Body Geometry takes the reverse path, from unity to multiplicity, and creates a contemporary and multilayered space.

A model wears a piece from the collection.

Looking simultaneously to the past and future, Body Geometry redefines Islamic geometry as a contemporary visual language that enables deeper connections between cultures. Hemmati said that “my practice is shaped at the intersection of art, design, and philosophy, and all the works in this new collection are derived from three foundational forms of Islamic geometry. Body Geometry is a research-based project, where not only the final pieces, but the design process itself, is presented as well. As a designer-artist, I’m trained to redefine fundamental Islamic geometric patterns, taking this notion of scale from jewellery to large-scale sculptures.”

For over two decades, she has been professionally active as a designer-artist and is the founder of the Banafsheh Hemmati Design Studio. Her extensive body of work spans sculpture, artistic jewellery, interior design, lighting, and furniture. Her approach to jewellery and sculpture is rooted in the appropriation of Islamic geometry. Inspired by the motifs of Islamic architecture, she integrates its geometric patterns into her creations, while disrupting their set order, to expand their visual and formal possibilities.

She is known for reinterpreting Islamic geometry in contemporary contexts. While her jewellery and sculptures are conceptually interconnected, they differ in scale. By elevating jewellery to engage with the “body” as a site of connection, her sculptures transcend traditional notions of adornment and ornamentation, creating a dialogue between the body and its space. Hemmati holds a Master’s degree in Industrial Design and is a PhD in Philosophy of Art. Her research focused on the philosophical foundations of the relationship between art and geometry. Her works have been showcased in numerous exhibitions across Iran, the United States, Italy, Germany, Malaysia, Turkey, the UAE, at Venice Design Week and Baltimore Jewelry Week. In addition to her artistic practice, Hemmati is an educator and has served as a juror for prestigious design festivals. In 2017, she was awarded the Florence International Art and Design Award.

Banafsheh Hemmati seated before a design.

Among her notable achievements is her 2023 installation Seven Cypresses, exhibited at the 2nd edition of DIFC Sculpture Park. Acquired by the private collection of DIFC, the installation, blending Gothic and Islamic geometry, bridges Eastern and Western artistic traditions. The installation is derived from the cut trunks of trees that are displayed in the interior; their context has been changed. The tree trunks are suspended, without being supported from the ground.

Traditionally, the tree is interpreted as a supporting pillar, standing between the earth and the sky. However, in this installation, since they are unsupported, the suspended trunks refer to the disappearance of the conventional established system and symbolism. The numbers projected on the works of the installation refer to the acceleration of environmental destruction, narrating, for example, the number of trees cut down every minute or the amount of greenhouse gas emissions every hour.

In the body of each of the plastic shapes of the installation, Hemmati tried to create a new form by combining Gothic geometry and Islamic geometry, pointing out a common component in the art of both the East and the West. The geometry refers to neither of the two traditions singly, but is a combination of both.

Hemmati is the only independent artist associated with DIFC and was invited to the 3rd edition of DIFC Sculpture Park to present an interactive site-specific installation titled The Eternal Gateway.

An Iranian designer-artist whose work lies at the intersection of art, design, and philosophy, her extensive practice spans sculpture and artistic jewellery, striving to reinterpret Islamic geometry in a contemporary context. She is a member of Klimt02, an international platform for contemporary art jewellery, and contributes as a writer to the Art Jewelry Forum (AJF) in the United States.

DIFC is the leading global financial centre in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia (MEASA) region. It has more than 20 years of success in facilitating trade and investment flows across MEASA. The region comprises 77 countries with an approximate population of 3.7bn and an estimated GDP of USD 10.5trn. The Centre connects these fast-growth markets to the economies of Asia, Europe, and the Americas.