Sahar Ghavami Thirteen reasons to stay soft (2025)
framed: 90h × 120w cm
Acrylic on canvas

The work draws on the symbolic tension surrounding the number thirteen, traditionally associated with misfortune, yet equally embedded within systems of belief where it carries protective or sacred value. Along with the image of cats, often "misread, mythologized, blamed for bad omens". In 'Thirteen reasons to stay soft' Sahar Ghavami repositions this ambiguity through a grouping of cats and a girl almost covered by their presence. "Some are hers, some are her friends', some are stand-ins for every animal that has ever pressed its warmth against a human and asked for nothing but the same in return", the artist notes. Each figure retains its specificity, contributing to a collective presence structured around closeness. What Ghavami's main characters craves is simple: "to give love in its fullest, softest form".

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This artwork is an original piece and has been personally signed by the artist.

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Thirteen reasons to stay soft

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Central to Ghavami’s practice is the creation of protective environments and dream-like states. Visually, her paintings unfold with a pronounced sense of fluid continuity: forms do not end so much as they become. A human hand holding an animal may gradually dissolve into its fur or skin, while the animal merges into the surrounding environment. These transitions occur without rupture, guided by an internal logic that resists hierarchy or separation.