Archway Gallery presents "Persian Garden,"featuring new paintings and sculptures by Maryam Lavaf.

Maryam Lavaf’s artwork is considered a reflection of her insight and perception of nature’s essence. Rather than painting details, in this current body of work, the artist symbolically creates an abstracted conception of nature encouraging viewers to connect while feeling the sense of nature within themselves. Lavaf believes that the beauty and majesty of nature is a natural healer, and that each of us has the ability to tap into this resource.

For generations, the Persian garden has been a landscape garden designed individually and created intentionally as a space embedded in the aesthetic and spiritual context of its past, as well as its contemporary, cultural, political, and social environment. These gardens typically feature streams, pathways, ponds, fountains, and usually a central pavilion. The beauty of these gardens with their surrounding walls deeply impressed writers who often mentioned their resemblance to Paradise on Earth when referencing Persian gardens in ancient manuscripts.

Lavaf takes her inspiration from these beautiful gardens and, using her own dynamic process, she works intuitively on several pieces simultaneously to create a dialogue between the works. By moving from one piece to another, she can develop ideas and push boundaries. She begins each piece with a simple line drawing then adds layers and layers of paint. The resulting paintings and sculptures explore concepts of nature, at the edge of abstraction.

The exhibition will remain on display through February 29.