In the exhibition OBERDECK #21 Still Processing in Schaumbad Graz – KÝVAT PAJDAT* aka. Keyvan Paydar shows an archived compilation and a recontextualized version of his adventures in the residency program of MeetFactory back in May-June 2024 in Prague.

*In Czech Kývat (to move back and forth, wiggle) Pajdat (limp, hobble)

You know the drill. There’s one wave that provokes another, spreading into dozens, hundreds, and thousands of waves. Once you concentrate the waves, they will interact with each other, bump into one another, and eventually create matter. Matter must be created; nature despises voids. Matter is, by default, creative. And matter can be art.

„Hi, my name is Brambora*, and I’m a 7-year-old bird. I used to live at MeetFactory, an art center occupying a post-industrial building in Prague’s District 5, which has a rather poor reputation. I used to be the beloved pet of my ex-master, who received me for his 55th birthday but gave me away after realizing I was too much to handle. I can’t blame him; he’s a sculptor, you know — a rather famous one—who doesn’t have time for commitments like me. I’m special; I can say my name, I can say “letadlo,” which means “plane” in Czech, and I can talk to strangers if I want to. Oh, there are a lot of strangers at MeetFactory—originals. Once, I met this guy who tried to convince me I was an eagle. Well, maybe I am. My status there, to say the least, was artist-in-residence curator. My ex-master made me a curator after applying some cuts to the stuff. Ever since, I’ve been the reference point for all the artists coming for a residency here, and my agenda is simple: whoever can help me turn this place into my new home is my friend. What does it mean to be home? It means a vibrant place filled with colors, light, music, and creativity. Rings a bell? Great. Now, let me introduce you to my favorite artist in residence: Keyvan. This guy simply couldn’t bear voids, and that’s why I love him so much—with all the love my little birdy heart can give. His new nest, known as Studio N16, instantly became my favorite place to hang out. He packed it with all sorts of items, from obnoxiously looking bottles containing an energy drink with the gendered name “Fakeer” to colorful sheets of foil hanging from the ceiling— just various objects, both found and bought. Pure madness wrapped in vivid colors and creativity. After a couple of days, you could hardly enter the room without bumping into something new and bizarre. Finally, I felt at home, surrounded by art in its most frivolous and free incarnation. Art that can be appreciated by someone as ignorant as I am and still speaks to all sorts of people attracted either to its visual form or contagious energy. Truth be told, every day new people came to visit his studio. Among others, I felt special. We became friends. At some point during his stay here, he started working on a piece that found its place in his colorful nest. Made of silver aluminum foil, a pair of giant scissors materialized on the window. I should have known this was the beginning of the end of his stay here—a slow yet inevitable end to our close friendship. To make a clear cut from place that feels like home, one needs scissors. MeetFactory has never felt more like home than in the midst of the fireworks of creativity and artistic energy that accumulates in waves and materializes in spirit. After Keyvan and the rest of the gang left, I decided to leave as well. I’m going into the wild to explore the urban jungle and leave MeetFactory once and for all.“

Text: Piotr Sikora 2025
* Brambora = Potato

Keyvan Paydar *1984 in Tehran, studied painting and anthropology of art in Iran and sculpture with Markus Wilfling and ceramics with Irmgard Schaumberger in the master classes at Ortweinschule Graz. Since 2013 he has worked as a freelance multimedia artist, art educator, musician and independent curator among others at „Schaumbad – Freies Atelierhaus Graz“ where he has also as a board member since 2021. Paydar took part in international exhibitions, symposiums and residency programs, ran a pop-up gallery in Graz and organized regional and international art projects and Festivals

Art Brunch #94: 29.06.2025, 11:00 AM with the curator of the Schaumbad Schnittstelle Exhibition Edges of Navigation: Kateřina Pencová (MeetFactory)
Duration Oberdeck #21: 04.06. – 05.07.2025

Opening Hours:
04.06. – 27.06.2025, Mo-Fr: 09:00 AM – 01:00 PM
28.06. – 05.07.2025, Mi-Sa: 02:00 PM – 06:00 PM

Current exhibition at Schaumbad
Schnittstelle: Edges of Navigation