Fresh Sinezani, 2007
HD video, 09:10 min, color sound

Entekhabi’s work Fresh Sinezani abstracts traditional Muslim castigation by beating himself on his chest which is tattooed of The Great Seal of the United States of America. This stands for the voluntary yearly religious penalization with the basic idea of deprivation and confinement of the Muslim society. Men of all ages, dressed in black traditional cloths, hit and cut themselves until they bleed heavily.
In the performance the artist, dressed in a black suit, first crashes a bottle of wine, then begins to beat himself. Followed by rhythmic Islamic chants, he gets driven into a state of trance until he becomes annoyed and tired. Then he stops.
The video shows a man (the artist himself, dressed in an elegant black suit) who starts clinking a bottle of white wine together with a glass. The clinking gradually is becoming more forceful until the bottle explodes in violent fashion. Next, the man begins to beat his chest, eventually unbuttoning his shirt to reveal a large tattoo that represents the Great Seal of the United States of America. Driven on by rhythmic Islamic chants, he continues to beat his chest ever more frenetically until he reaches a state of trance. The self-punishment becomes increasingly difficult to bear, not only for the artist and performer, but also for the viewer. Fresh Sinezani abstracts traditional Shiite self-flagellation (as practiced on the Day of Ashura), a form of voluntary annual “religious penalization,” to examine the fundamental idea of deprivation within Muslim society.
The work abstracts traditional Muslim castigation. The voluntary yearly religious penalization stands for the basic idea of deprivation in the Muslim so- ciety. The artist, dressed in a black suit, first crashes a bottle of wine, then begins to beat himself. Fol- lowing rhythmic Islamic chants, he gets driven into a state of trance until he becomes annoyed and tired. Shahram Entekhabi explores hisideas via a va- riety of performative practices, highlighting indi- viduals who are ordinarily marginalized and made invisible.

(Deutsch)
Die Videoarbeit Fresh Sinezani thematisiert die tradionelle islamische Selbstgeißelung. Das Ritual der jährlichen freiwilligen religiösen Bestrafung symbolisiert die Idee der Entbehrung in der islamischen Gesell- schaft. Der Künstler trägt einen schwarzen Anzug, zerschmettert zunächst eine Flasche Wein und beginnt dann, sich selbst zu schlagen. Zu rhyth- mischen islamischen Gesängen gerät er in Trance, bis er verärgert und müde wird. Shahram Entekhabi erforscht seine Ideen mit verschiedenen performativen Praktiken und hebt Individuen hervor, die gewöhnlich marginalisiert und unsichtbar sind.
Shahram Entekhabi legt in dem Video die westliche Kleidung ab und beginnt sich nach schiitischem Ritual zu bewegen, was für uns zunächst nur befremdlich sein kann. Er bekennt sich zu seiner Herkunft, wie zur globalen Kunstentwicklung und bedient sich ihrer modernen oder modernistischen Stilmittel. Er selbst schlüpft aus einer Hülle in die Rolle eines grundsätzlich Anderen. Wo ist seine Integrität und die der anderen repräsentierten KünstlerInnen?

سینه‌ زنی نوعی آیین عزاداری است و به کسی که سینه زنی می‌کند «سینه‌زن» گفته می‌شود. . در ایران، گاه حالت سیاسی و اعتراضی نیز داشته‌است. سینه زنی معمولاً به همراه نوحه‌خوانی انجام می‌شود و با نوحه هماهنگ است

イラン出身のShahram Entekhabiは、ムスリムの風習的な懲戒である、自分の胸を叩き続けるという行為を、自らパフォーマンスをしてビデオ作品にした。しかし、その中で、最後には疲れきって飽きてしまったかのように、はけてゆく彼の姿に、現代的なユーモアと客観的な態度を見る。

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Fresh Sinezani appeared at the following exhibitions and festivals, among others:
2012: Come Invest in Us. You’ll Strike Gold — curated by Diana Wiegersma, Hilger Brot Kunsthalle, Vienna, Austria (catalogue)
2011: They Go Bang Bang in my Head — AARAN Gallery, Tehran, Iran (solo Exhibition)
2009: Asian hot shots Berlin — Gallery and project space JET, Berlin, Germany (catalogue)