Lotus is my (Shiva Ahmadi) first single-channel animation and marks an important shift in my practice. I appropriated the image of the Buddha as the representation of a wise, forgiving deity to illustrate the devolution of a pure and well-intentioned ruler into an irresponsible and corrupt despot under the influence of absolute power. Bombs, grenades, and other explosives evocative of the accessories of war slowly infiltrate the narrative, serving as a metaphor for the volatile political atmosphere of our contemporary time. This narrative springs from my own experience of war, political corruption, and global instability, first encountered during my childhood in Iran in the 1970s and later as an adult in the 1990s.

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