About

Medium of Exchange combines photographic tableaus alongside a scripted film. The freestanding photographs portray theatrical interplays between caricatured OPEC Oil Ministers and the western government officials who together control the oil industry. Solitary or group portraits are staged against backdrops composed of found images of oil fields and refineries, strewn with props relating to the commodities or cultural signifiers that shape each specific narrative.

Soleimani's various characters are engaged in bizarre acts of excess, romance and aggression. In the group portraits, the power …