A Unique Collaboration Between Two Iranian Artists Based in Paris Hanieh Delecroix & Keyvan Saber: Lifeline

Hanieh Delecroix & Keyvan Saber / "Interpretation", Acrylic on paper, 56x75 cm, 2012 / Courtesy of Rose Issa Projects

Prior to this partnership, Hanieh Delecroix pursued painting and sculpture while working as a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist, with a specialism in adults suffering from chronic illness. The relationship between the mind and the body, especially the mind of a damaged body, is central to her art.

Shades of black and blue predominate in her paintings, particularly intense hues of cobalt, ultramarine, and cerulean, which she usually applies with a palette knife in sweeping strokes, creating abstract forms that look “written”. She favours translucent paper, chosen for its fragility and its symbolic, skin-like quality. “A crack in the paint or a tear in the paper become like a scar,” she explains. “That’s life. We always tell children not to touch things or they will break, but in life you have to touch and to take risks.”

Keyvan Saber is a visual artist and poet, who has also worked as a professional photographer, graphic designer, and art critic in Iran and France. Spontaneous, free flowing and emotive, his calligraphy blurs the line between poetry and image, and is greatly influenced by his Iranian origins.

Hanieh Delecroix & Keyvan Saber / "A L'oree de Toi", Acrylic on paper, 50x40 cm, 2012 / Courtesy of Rose Issa Projects

Hanieh Delecroix & Keyvan Saber / "Dans ta Main", Acrylic on paper, 75x56 cm, 2012 / Courtesy of Rose Issa Projects

Hanieh Delecroix & Keyvan Saber / "Balade Nocturne", Acrylic on paper, 50x40 cm, 2012 / Courtesy of Rose Issa Projects

Hanieh Delecroix & Keyvan Saber / "Ce Collier Nommé Désir", Acrylic on tracing paper, 84x117 cm, 2012 / Courtesy of Rose Issa Projects

Hanieh Delecroix & Keyvan Saber / "When I was a Child", Acrylic on tracing paper, 42x29 cm, 2012 / Courtesy of Rose Issa Projects

Signing their paintings Hanieh & Keyvan, their seamless method involves Hanieh painting abstract images as a stage on which Keyvan performs his writing, embellishing Hanieh’s work with fluid and energetic abstract calligraphy of his own poetry or texts by contemporary and classical Persian writers. With an acrylic pen, he applies white waves of words that render light and texture to the harmonious shades of blue, perfectly complementing the composition. The result is “Lifeline” – a collection of paintings that represent the human psyche and the body’s silhouette, and evoke a powerful emotional response.

On the occasion of their first UK solo show, artists Hanieh Delecroix and Keyvan Saber explain the unique balance of their working partnership, in which Hanieh's abstract and soulful paintings form the backdrop for Keyvan's freeform calligraphy.