Mehdi Moutashar: 0,0,0
mehdi moutashar: 0,0,0
serigraph on paper, hand signed in pencil
published in 2025
by comptoir des arts franches montagnes (cafm)
saint-brais, switzerland
printed by SYMETRIA, saint-louis
edition of 250, 30 x 30 cm in a frame of 32 x 32 x 3.5 cm
including wooden shadow gap frame
0,0,0: a global snapshot of non-objective art in the digital age
commemorating the 110th anniversary of kazimir malevich’s groundbreaking 0,10 exhibition (petrograd, 1915), the 0,0,0 portfolio is a seminal contemporary project that explores the enduring legacy of geometric and non-representational art worldwide.
the title “0,0,0” references the pure state of the color black in programming code, symbolizing the core principle of maximum reduction and universal applicability—a direct conceptual bridge to malevich's revolutionary "zero form."
this limited-edition portfolio gathers 30 original works by international artists, showcasing the vibrant, transcultural evolution of constructivist principles across different generations and continents. it is a visual dialogue between the historical avant-garde and the logic of our networked, digital world.
mehdi moutashar. born in the ancient city of hilla (near babylon) and based in france since the 1970s, moutashar is not merely a painter but a scholar of space. for over three decades (1974–2008), he served as a professor at the école nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs in paris. this academic rigor is visible in every line he draws: his work is not decoration; it is an equation.
moutashar stands at a unique intersection where arabic science meets western non-figurative art. he reminds us that the roots of geometry lie in the "measurement of the earth" (geo-metria). his work channels the scientific precision of islamic astronomy—the astrolabe and the quadrant—and the disciplined rhythm of calligraphy. in his hands, the calligraphic stroke is liberated from its function as text. it becomes a pure beam of "digital black," slashing through the white void with the same radical reduction found in european minimalism. he proves that the grid of the modernist and the arabesque of the scribe are, in fact, speaking the same language.
for the 0,0,0 portfolio, moutashar presents a motif born from a dialogue with history: his monumental intervention at the abbaye of cluny (the farinier). the work featured today is a diamond (rhombus) composed of dense, hatched triangles. in the 13th-century farinier, moutashar’s lines echoed the magnificent oak framework of the roof, demonstrating that the "zero" point of geometry is a universal truth shared by medieval carpenters, arab mathematicians, and modern artists alike.