M HKA Ensembles

Artist Novel, 17,5 x 10,5 cm, 154 p., language : English, publisher : self-pubished, ISBN : 9781008983847.

Collection: Collection M HKA, Antwerp (Inv. no. B 2031/242).

Literary synopsis

A serpentine hallucination taking place across three parallel timelines, Perturbation: A Speculative History of Future(s) Past connects the intertwined geopolitics of the Strait of Hormuz to vastly distant geographies. With stories told from multiple viewpoints, Perturbation roots the geopolitics of the Hormuz Region in individual experiences of law, citizenship, emigration, colonialism, culture, and history.

Relation of the novel to the artist’s practice

Perturbation is the central pillar of a larger body of work titled Tales From the Garden of Zar. The narratives explored through this artist's novel exist on three parallel timelines that manifest in different ways in the accompanying short film, sculptures, prints and archival documents that form the larger project. Rouzbeh Akhbari's practice as a whole is research-driven, which often brings him to various archives throughout the development processes. This artist's novel acts as a bridge or a guiding platform that makes his research traceable and connects much of the content which is omitted in the film or the exhibitions to the speculations that function at the heart of the larger artwork. Akhbari's personal observations and familial archives that appear in Perturbation bring the philosophical questions posed at the core of the science-fictional chapters closer to a speculative discourse whereby everyday experiences of citizenship and law become entangled with the inner-workings of the art world and research-driven art practices.

Novel's website