{"product_id":"why-12-original-oil-on-canvas-by-melina-ghaemi-vanarthub","title":"Why 12?: Original Oil on Canvas by Melina Ghaemi | VanArtHub","description":"\u003cp\u003eA city cut into rock, curving back on itself in tier after tier of arches, ramps and staircases. Hundreds of small cloaked figures move through it — crowding the balconies, waiting in doorways, climbing, or standing entirely still. A circular pit opens at the centre of it all. And on the middle terrace hangs a golden clock, its numerals turned toward XII.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMelina Ghaemi lived with this canvas for months, and the figures in it were never planned in advance. In her words:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cblockquote\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“They are not pre-designed characters. Each one is part of a feeling that lived with me at a particular moment. On days when I was tired, they were tired too. On days when I was hopeful, they were looking for a way to keep going. Sometimes they gathered together, sometimes they fell silent, and sometimes they were so alone that I felt one of them was me.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the centre of this world there is a pit. Some are trapped in it, and some are still trying to find a way up. For me that pit is not only a sign of falling — it is a reminder that climbing out is always possible, but not everyone sees the way.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf everything begins at twelve and returns to twelve, are we really moving? Or are we circling in one repeating loop? Perhaps time is not something that merely passes by us. Perhaps we live inside it — fall, rise again, hope, grow tired, and return to the same point we thought we had already passed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhy 12\u003c\/em\u003e is not an answer about time. It is a question, and I want it to stay in the viewer’s mind for a moment after they look away: if we come back to the same point, have we really returned to the beginning — or has something inside us changed?”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/blockquote\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eLiving with this painting\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt 140 × 160 cm this is an anchor work — a canvas that sets the tone of a room rather than decorating it. It rewards distance and proximity in different ways: across a large living room or lobby the architecture reads as a single spiralling mass, while up close the tiers break into hundreds of individual figures, each one doing something slightly different. It suits a tall wall with room to step back, and it belongs in spaces where people linger: a stairwell landing, a study, a boutique hotel lobby, a private gallery wall.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eDetails\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eArtist:\u003c\/strong\u003e Melina Ghaemi — Vancouver, Canada\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSeries:\u003c\/strong\u003e An Illusion Called Time\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMedium:\u003c\/strong\u003e Oil on canvas\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSize:\u003c\/strong\u003e 140 cm wide × 160 cm high (55 × 63 in)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eYear:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2026 — signed by the artist, lower right\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eOne of a kind:\u003c\/strong\u003e an original painting, never a print or reproduction\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eShips unframed, rolled in a protective tube, with a certificate of authenticity\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eShipping \u0026amp; care\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFree shipping to the USA, Canada and the UAE; international delivery quoted on request. Every piece is packed by the gallery and insured in transit, and arrives with a 14-day unconditional return window.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKeep the canvas out of direct sunlight and away from heat sources or damp walls. Dust the surface with a dry, soft brush — never a wet cloth or any cleaning product. If you would like framing advice for this size, the gallery can recommend a Vancouver framer or arrange it before shipping.\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"VanArtHub","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54793805201745,"sku":null,"price":8000.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0896\/1956\/2833\/files\/7bc9f62537f7a7173ece21a5b1a22f95.jpg?v=1788509317","url":"https:\/\/vanarthub.com\/products\/why-12-original-oil-on-canvas-by-melina-ghaemi-vanarthub","provider":"vanarthub","version":"1.0","type":"link"}