Author: Sujata Aher

Artworks Gallery Presents:

Perviz Heyat: “The Industrial Revolution”

Perviz Heyat is a multimedia artist living in Winston Salem, North Carolina. He began his art training at the age of six and his formal training at the age of 14 in Istanbul, Turkey. He had his first solo show at the age of 17 in Istanbul.

Heyat approaches his art with belief in complete freedom of expression. He believes that every person has art within them and that we all use art every day. The choices we make in our lives reflect the artistic direction of our existence, with a delicate balance of the opposing forces of rules and freedom. This balance of opposing forces is a necessary part of being human.

Perviz has travelled across the United States working in big cities and on Native American reservations throughout the past 35 years. His experiences are the subject matter of his paintings, which address the social unrest, inequality, and alienation inherent in a modern society focused on economic and technological progress. 

Perviz had several exhibitions in private galleries in Istanbul before he moved to the United States in 1982. He has exhibited his paintings in galleries in Wheeling, West Virginia. His paintings were also featured in the Sony Pictures Classics release, Whatever, which debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in 1997. He had regular solo and group exhibits in Washington, DC at the Studio Gallery, and in Manhattan, New York, at the Phoenix Gallery between 2002- 2011.

Perviz moved to Winston Salem in 2011 and started experimenting with new styles and discovering new techniques. Evolving from a realistic style, he painted in “pop art” style for several years until he adopted the abstract expressionist style he employs in this exhibit. 

His current show called the “The Industrial Revolution” represents the abstract expressionist force behind this revolution and is influenced by the American masters from the fifties and sixties.

The exhibits are free and open to the public.