the critique of reason
A Critique of Reason is Joshua Hashemzadeh’s third solo exhibition with MRG Fine Art. Recently obtaining a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute, the artist presents us with a critical reflection of his experiences within the pedagogical institution. The show takes its title from the famed literary work, “The Critique of Pure Reason” by Immanuel Kant, which evaluates the foundations and classifications of human knowledge – A premise Josh uses as the preliminary framework for this exhibition. The works in this show allude to the financial burdens associated with higher education, the proliferation of intellectual disparity, and the systemic hypocrisy of accredited institutions.
The works, presented in the spirit of academic experimentation, have been accumulated throughout, as well as immediately after, Joshua Hashemzadeh’s time as an undergraduate student. Toying with materials such as physical currency, lithography, receipts, and his diploma, he touches on a growing divide between himself and his alma mater. Thus viewers are encouraged to re-examine the impact of institutional influence and the socio-economic privileges associated with education in the United States.
“I’m fascinated by the ways we construct value in banal objects and experiences, whether its language, currency, or art. The receipt paintings are a result of recorded purchases that collectively account for my time in university, and ultimately the worth of everything I’ve learned there. If merit and progress are, in large, defined by the validation of private institutions and economic factors then it’s my obligation, as an artist, to provide such documentation as art itself.”
Divided between moments of austerity and aesthetic play, the gallery becomes an expression of institutional duality. Whether considering the haptic collage or ready-made objects, the exhibition insinuates a parallel between universal truths and ideological fabrication– A folly the artist attributes to the traumatic failings of the “educational complex,” an entity alluded to in the space’s central installation which is structured to the dimensions of the late Mike Kelley’s piece by the same name.
Joshua Hashemzadeh (b. 1993, Los Angeles, CA) has a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute. His work, often varying in mediums, is built around an investigation of postmodern conditions referring in detail to: millennial identity, social institution, and commerce. Recent works have been featured in several exhibitions in the San Francisco and Los Angeles areas with recent highlights being: Formal Attire Only, MRG Fine Art, Los Angeles; 32 Shades of Plastic, MRG Fine Art, Los Angeles; Tethered, Like Minded Salon, San Francisco.
