Sana Ghobbeh These roots never blossomed

In the southern reaches of Tehran, the capital of Iran, lies Kahrizak – a town where history lingers in quiet evolution, steeped in echoes of the past. It is home to a sugar refinery born from Belgian hands – a seed sown in a once-fertile landscape of lush lawns, brimming with promise and nurturing dreams of progress and the bloom of industrialization.
Now, the refinery stands half-ruined yet steadfast, surrounded by graves, decay, and sprawling mass construction. Its wrinkled walls bear the indelible marks of time, a silenced witness to the rise and fall of its surroundings and the relentless transformation of the region. Kahrizak’s refinery is more than just a relic of the past; it stands as a profound symbol of what was lost and sacrificed as ambition reshaped the land.
about
Sana Ghobbeh is an Iranian-born artist and artistic researcher based in Brussels. Her work examines the life and the impact of specific sites of infrastructure, often situated in Iran. In her transdisciplinary approach, Sana integrates insights from her studies in architecture and research methods developed as a visual artist into a performative storytelling practice.
This solo performance is a result of Sana’s research project Sugar Cubes, an exploration of the historic industrial ties between Belgium and Iran in the sugar industry.
Her long-term research, Performing Spaces – an exploration on urban structures and their inner narratives – interweaves layers of archival documentation, individual memories, anecdotal interviews, minute details, historical facts, and personal imagination. Through this multifaceted approach, she aims to provide not only an informative, mapped understanding of a place but also a tangible sense of the often-overlooked politics and poetics that inhabit these spaces.
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Development Assistent: Arezoo Khazanbeig
Dramaturgical advice: Maarten Van den Bussche
Mentor: Samah Hijawi
Production: Kunstenwerkplaats
Photo credit: Navid Fayaz