Etemad Newspaper :: A Constellation of Tree and Human

Etemad Newspaper has published an interview with Kashan-based sculptor Hamidreza Sadeghzadeh about Taagh, his site-specific installation presented at Zourkhaneh Art Gallery.

Created for the central pit of a four-hundred-year-old traditional zourkhaneh in Kashan, Taagh brings together fragments of a fallen desert tree, stone, steel and dried plants. Through these materials, Sadeghzadeh reflects on the relationship between human endurance, the fragile desert environment and the architectural heritage of Kashan.

A Tree Reassembled

Sadeghzadeh developed the installation specifically for the historic building that now houses Zourkhaneh Art Gallery. Rather than transforming the natural materials into polished sculptural forms, he chose to preserve their existing character. Pieces of dry wood, stones collected from the surrounding landscape and an exposed steel structure were assembled to raise the fallen tree once again.

The resulting work is neither a conventional sculpture nor a reconstruction of nature. It is an image of renewed life: a tree that has collapsed but stands again, carrying its roots, soil and history into a new architectural setting.

The Desert as a Metaphor

The installation draws its name from the taagh, a desert tree known for surviving severe conditions. Although its visible form may remain relatively small, its roots can extend deep beneath the ground in search of water. It withstands saline soil, sandstorms, intense heat and long periods of drought before producing new growth.

For Sadeghzadeh, this capacity for survival creates a powerful connection between trees and people. Desert communities, like the plants surrounding them, learn to remain patient, resilient and deeply rooted. Taagh therefore becomes a meditation on the decision to remain, resist and grow again under difficult circumstances.

Art, Ecology and Cultural Memory

The work also places two vulnerable forms of heritage in conversation: the natural environment and the historic architecture of Kashan. The drying of springs, the disappearance of trees and the deterioration of traditional buildings are not presented as separate concerns. They belong to the same story of memory, responsibility and survival.

Installing the work inside the historic zourkhaneh required the artist to respond carefully to the scale and limitations of the building. The large structure could not be transported through the entrance as a finished object, so it was assembled inside the gallery without damaging the centuries-old architecture.

Through this encounter between a fallen tree and a preserved historic space, Taagh asks viewers to look again at materials and places that might otherwise be overlooked. The installation suggests that art can make environmental loss visible while preserving the possibility of hope.

Source: “A Metaphor of Tree and Human,” an interview by Maryam Amousa with Hamidreza Sadeghzadeh, published by Etemad Newspaper on 15 August 2023.

Read the original interview on Etemad Newspaper