Ed Lake on Amir Fallah for The National.
The Ultimate Mom Painting is a labour of love. A hand-made card that’s seven feet tall. A collage of paper flowers, hundreds strong.
What could be more guileless? It ought to have macaroni stuck to it. As its creator, Amir H Fallah explains: “My mom, about a year ago, said: ‘I want some of your artwork for the house.’ I was like ‘Mom, you like ducks and geese and flowers, and I don’t really do that, you know?’ She was like: ‘No, just make me something pretty... Just make it really colourful with lots of flowers.’ And I was like: ‘I have to make a flower painting. How am I going to pull this one off?’”
Short answer: with glee. Fallah’s Mom paintings – the other one in his new show at the Third Line Gallery is a smaller version of the ultimate, titled Mom You are No. 1 – draw out the most exuberant strain in his style. In fact, it’s hard to see what problem he could have foreseen.
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