History of Civilizations of Central Asia
partment noted a trend towards abstraction and com-
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four were foreign. The Fine Arts Department noted a trend towards abstraction and com- mented on this biennale that ‘Our art is generally losing touch with reality, divorcing itself from any resemblance with the physical world surrounding us.’ The large increase in young artists and beginners was also noted. 10 Although the number of modernists increased rapidly, so also did the criticism which held that few artists had any really new ideas. Others maintained that ‘Iranian painters, by adopting the Western style, have deprived our country of our national art.’ 11 Despite the growing unease about the nature of modern painting in the mid-1960s, many exhibitions of modern art were held. The most talked-about was a ‘Street Exhibit’ (Nem¯ayeshg¯ah-e Khy¯ab¯ani ), when 56 artists put 180 works on show in the street south of Farah Park (now Laleh Park). Ms Seyhun with Saba Gallery sponsored the exhibition, which was seen by thousands of people. Many other exhibitions were held, especially in the autumn, at foreign cultural societies, hotels and government buildings. One (in October 1968) was of works by 37 painters of the Kamal al-Molk Arts School, all in the classical style. What was also new was that a number of commercial art galleries had opened such as the Borghese, Modern Art, Saba and Iran galleries. In 1969 the Seyhun Gallery (opened in February 1967) and the Negar Gallery held several exhibitions of contemporary Iranian art. 12 National TV held an exhibition of work by male art students in November 1969; there was also an exhibition of work by female students. By 1970 there were two art schools in Tehran, one for boys, the other for girls; both Tabriz and Isfahan also had an art school. There was a five-year course in art and handicrafts and a three-year course in painting, cal- ligraphy and music. Since 1961, there had also been a School of Decorative Arts (Madraseh- ye Honarh¯a-ye Taz’ini ) where those graduates of art schools who had not been admitted to university could continue their studies and obtain a degree. All universities had a Faculty of Fine Arts, and there were also private art schools. 13 To give an outlet to some 50 professional modernist painters and several hundred art students, the Ministry of Arts and Culture supported the modern art world in various ways. Most notable had been its initiative in starting the Tehran Biennale, the last of which was 10 Echo of Iran, Iran Almanac 1964, pp. 621–2. 11 Echo of Iran, Iran Almanac 1969, p. 601. 12 They showed works by Mohasses, Zendehrudi, Tanavoli, Seyhun, Arabshahi, Gholam-Hoseyn Nami, Changiz and Rabin Shahvaq, M. Katuziyan and L. Matin-Daftari. 13 In March 1970 Iran had 50 institutes teaching painting. These had 2,809 students, of whom 310 gradu- ated in 1970. According to the 1966 census, there were 5,804 painters in Iran (5,075 men and 729 women): see Echo of Iran, Iran Almanac 1971, pp. 619–20. 746 Contents
Copyrights ISBN 92-3-103985-7 IRAN AND AFGHANISTAN held in 1966. For by 1970, gone were the days that artists had to go to great lengths to get their works exhibited. By then there were several art galleries catering for a relatively small group of interested people (the majority of the country had no interest in these new art fads). The ministry also provided scholarships for aspiring artists to study abroad as well as financing the participation of Iranian artists in international exhibitions. During the late 1960s and 1970s there was a strong artistic output in a range of non- representational art forms. However, there was also a backlash against modern forms of art, resulting in a renewed interest in coffee-house paintings, 14 which suddenly became very popular. Grigorian had exhibited them at his gallery and had encouraged his students to take an interest in them. The most prominent artists working in this style, which flour- ished in the early twentieth century, were Hoseyn Agha Qollar Aghasi, ‘Abbas Bolukifar and Mohammad Agha Modabber (the most famous of whom was Qollar Aqasi). When Empress Farah bought many of their paintings, everyone else followed. But it was not just a fad, for many modern artists took their inspiration from coffee-house paintings. The other development was the beginning of a kind of neo-naturalist school that eschewed modernism and sought to find its inspiration in the Iranian past and its roots. The work of Hoseyn Zendehrudi (b. 1937) exhibited at the Tehran Biennale drew much praise and led to this art trend being called the ‘saqq¯a-kh¯aneh school’ by the art critic Karim Emami. He gave it this name because the water fountain, or saqq¯a-kh¯aneh, is tradi- tionally ‘a piece of religious folk art with a decorative façade and an almost metaphysical presence’. Zendehrudi combined modern Western and Iranian techniques and materials with traditional Shi‘ite ritualistic and folkloric themes and thus appealed to a large seg- ment of society ( Fig. 8
). Many other artists 15 followed the same path, because it offered the road to modernity without having to copy or ape the West or become like the West. It seemed as if a typical Iranian formula had been found. These artists attempted to use traditional calligraphic, illustrative and visual elements in their work. Other artists were inspired, with greater intensity and independence, by the elements of Persian visual arts of the remote and recent past, and produced works that were clearly distinguishable from other forms of Western modern art. These neo-traditionalists (or the saqq¯a-kh¯aneh school) were to dominate the next Tehran Biennale. This was all part of a growing anxiety, among both intellectuals and the general popu- lation, about the growing Westernization in all aspects of life. It was at that time that Jalal Al-e Ahmad wrote his Gharbzadegi (Westernmania). Fifteen years earlier he had already participated in the discussions held by the Apadana and Fighting Cock groups about the 14 See Religious Inspiration in Iranian Art, 1978 ; Les peintures populaires de la légende persane, 1979 .
Artists such as Mansur Qandriz, Faramarz Pilaram, Sadeq Tabrizi, Naser Oveysi and Mas‘ud ‘Arabshahi. 747
Contents ISBN 92-3-103985-7 IRAN AND AFGHANISTAN FIG. 8. Hoseyn Zendehrudi: untitled, 1976 (acrylic, 130 × 162 cm). (Photo: © Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art.) meaning of modern art. By the mid-1960s Ahmad’s position was clear with regard to modern art. In one of his novels (The American Husband), the Iranian wife says of her American husband: First he invited me to an exhibition of paintings at the new ‘Abbasabad Club – one of those exhibits where they draw figures without a head, or put heaps and heaps of paint in the middle of two yards of fabric. 16 Many were pleased at this development as they felt that contemporary Iranian art con- tinued to be influenced by Western artists: it was either inspired by them or was an imitation of their work. With the advent of the so-called saqq¯a-kh¯aneh school, there was finally a domestic artistic innovation which paid attention to Iranian traditions. The modern art crit- ics felt that rather than art for art’s sake, art for the people should be pursued. Many people had been greatly upset by the exhibition of contemporary paintings in April 1971. They also discussed it with Empress Farah, whose paintings had been exhibited, despite the fact that traditional paintings had also been shown at the exhibition. As a result, observers noted that 16 Javadi, 1988 , p. 244. 748 Contents
Copyrights ISBN 92-3-103985-7 IRAN AND AFGHANISTAN there was a waning interest in modern art; many galleries closed, although Tehran still had around 13 galleries in 1973 and a new one was being opened. The newspaper ¯ Ayandeg¯an commented in February 1973: ‘Our painting has become alien to the general public.’ 17 Karim Emami wrote in Keyhan International on 9 June 1973 that Iranian painters were still in search of their own identity: The artists have merely lost much of their own cultural heritage in the process, without finding any viable alternative. A healthy assessment of Western traditions and a deep intellectual reaction to foreign products are lacking. It is all the more difficult since Western civilization itself is undergoing serious turbulence, redefinition of terms and throwing out ever newer conceptions of art. The entire unholy mess is too often copied and uncritically accepted by those who have lost their own traditions. 18 In 1974 Tehran’s First International Arts Exhibition was organized, with France dis- playing 160 paintings by French and Iranian painters. It was decided that it would be held every two years. 19 This and other events show that, despite criticism, modern art was here to stay, but so was the neo-traditionalist school of painting. During the remainder of the decade there were no new developments apart from the establishment of the Museum of Contemporary Art (Muzeh-ye Honarh¯a-ye Mo’¯aser) in 1977. POST-REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD After the Islamic revolution in 1979, art inspired by popular traditions and religion, that is Shi‘ism, gained even more in popularity. This found its expression in all forms of visual arts. Whereas religion had always been present in the works of the saqq¯a-kh¯aneh artists, Shi‘ite themes now became the message in the works of many artists. However, this new trend did not displace the older schools. Modern abstract, cubist painting as well as natu- ralist, realist and neo-traditional painting was still thriving in the Islamic Republic of Iran (hereafter Iran). During the 1980s, with the ongoing eight-year war against Iraq, Shi‘ite- patriotic themes overwhelmingly dominated Iranian art. Supported by the state and domi- nated by popular religious pro-government organizations, they targeted the whole Iranian people to mobilize it in the ‘imposed war’ (as it was called in Iran) against the Iraqi army which had invaded in 1980. Posters and wall paintings, printed in millions or painted on 17 Echo of Iran, Iran Almanac 1973 , p. 457. 18 Ibid., Iran Almanac 1974, p. 483. 19 Ibid., Iran Almanac 1975, p. 469. 749 Contents
Copyrights ISBN 92-3-103985-7 IRAN AND AFGHANISTAN walls all over Iran, played a crucial role in the mass mobilization of Iranians, especially in the first years of the war, which ended in 1988. 20 Current government policy continues to support Iranian artists, including their partic- ipation in international venues. Iran sent the work of three modern painters to the 2003 Biennale in Venice: the sculpture by Behruz Darash (painter, sculptor and musician) was composed of hundreds of minimalist aluminium elements suspended in an allegorical conflict between fantasy and reality; Hoseyn Khosrowjerdi (painter, designer and cartoon- ist) showed a combination of digital art and performance art; and the work by Ahmad Nadaliyan consisted of sculpted fish like ancient fossils in a river-bed. All of the above shows that Iranian artists have found their own multifaceted voice. SCULPTURE Kamal al-Molk was also an accomplished sculptor, as his statues of the great poets Amir Kabir and Ferdowsi show. Kamal al-Molk also influenced modern sculpture through his pupil Abol-Hasan Sediqi, who introduced the Western classical style into Iran, just as his master had done for painting. Modern Iranian sculpture was much influenced by Europe. By 1960 the most notable contemporary sculptors were Sediqi, Haji Nuri and Arjangi (d. 1963). Also influential was Sayyed ‘Ali Akbar San‘ati (b. 1918), another pupil of the Kamal al-Molk school. He created more than 1,000 paintings and 400 statues. After the exhibition of contemporary paintings in April 1971, several statues were ordered, mainly traditional in style. On the other hand, modern sculpture was better received, both modern pieces and copies of pre-Islamic models. The work of Parviz Tanavoli (b. 1937) ( Fig. 9
) and Jazeh Tabataba’i (b. 1930) also took its inspiration from Iranian folk art and the pre-Islamic past. Tabataba’i was the founder of the Modern Art Gallery ( Fig. 10
). Tanavoli and Zendehrudi had worked together and were artistic fellow-travellers; the former considered his atelier Kabud to be the cradle of the saqq¯a-kh¯aneh movement. Both sculptors (who are also painters) welded scrap materials into sometimes robot-like and sometimes abstract agglomerated figures. One of Tanavoli’s best-known sculptures is a 3-D calligraphic representation of the word ‘Hitch’, which means ‘Nothing’, i.e. emptiness, non-existence and beyond ‘illusion’. There are clear ref- erences to the ideas of Omar Khayyam, as well as to some modern Western writers, in this sculpture. It also pays tribute to the great Persian calligraphic tradition. 20
, 1989; A Decade with Painters of
, 1989 ; A Selection of Works Exhibited at the First Biennale of Iranian Painters , 1991 . 750
Contents Copyrights ISBN 92-3-103985-7 IRAN AND AFGHANISTAN FIG. 9. Parviz Tanavoli: Farhad Has Fallen, 1968 (ceramic, 40 × 101 × 42 cm). (Photo: © Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art.) MINIATURE PAINTING Even though Iranian painting was influenced by the Kamal al-Molk school, the contem- porary art of miniature moved in another direction. Promoted by the Madraseh-ye ‘ ¯ Ali Honarh¯a-ye Ir¯ani (Academy of Iranian Arts), miniaturists first found a route back to the Timurid Herat and later to the Safavid style. They also took their inspiration from the painters who signed their works ‘S¯aheb-e Zam¯an’ (‘Master of the Time’) and their follow- ers in the Indo-Persian style. Although the modern miniaturists use innovative techniques and add new elements such as light and shadow, the pictures are somewhat similar to those of Reza ‘Abbasi’s period (beginning of the seventeenth century: see Volume V of the
, Chapter 19 ). The themes are once again the nobles, palaces, polo and banquet scenes, etc. Among the great masters of the neo-Herat/neo-Safavid school were Hoseyn Taherzadeh Behzad (1894–1968), Hadi Tajvidi (1891–1938), ‘Ali Moti‘ and Mohammad Mossaver al- Molk. The younger generation is represented by the works of ‘Ali Karimi and Mahmud Farshchiyan. All these painters use new methods of composition and perspective. Hoseyn Behzad, after his return from France where he went in 1935, invented a new style by com- bining modern European art with traditional Iranian painting and using sketch and colour as the primary elements of his painting. Contrary to the traditional miniatures, Behzad 751 Contents
Copyrights ISBN 92-3-103985-7 IRAN AND AFGHANISTAN FIG. 10. Jazeh Tabataba’i: untitled, 1973 (oil and collage, 73 × 113 cm). (Photo: © Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art.) used colour sparingly. A number of works with only a single figure and in one colour are representative of his unique style. Like Behzad and other miniaturists, ‘Ali Karimi (1913–97) experimented first with the traditional miniatures of the Herat, Safavid as well as the Qajar eras. Karimi was one of the most famous contemporary masters of miniature painting in Iran. He started his art education at the age of 12, graduated at 22 and went on to become professor at and later director of the Academy of Iranian Arts. Karimi turned to a new direction in his mature artistic period: the daily lives of ordinary people, as well as his own fantasies, now constituted the main themes of his painting. Without departing from the classical style of the miniature, the artist developed a new genre of contemporary painting. Karimi produced more than 500 works, both traditional and modern miniatures. 21 While, even after his death, Behzad remains the leading figure of this school, it is presently Mahmud Farshchiyan who is better known among the general public. 21 http://home.t-online.de/home/f.a.karimi/history.htm. 752 Contents
Copyrights ISBN 92-3-103985-7 IRAN AND AFGHANISTAN Caricatures, cartoons and posters Caricatures and cartoons had become an integral part of the Iranian media since about 1906. Initially, they were rather roughly drawn and inspired by Western models. A new Iranian style came into being in the 1960s and is now well developed due to the ground-breaking work of artists such as Ardashir Mohasses, Deram-Dakhsh and Davalu. As stated in the previous paragraphs, with the outbreak of the Islamic revolution in 1979 both cartoons and posters, which had been mostly comic or commercial in nature, acquired a political, religious and satirical dimension, while at the same time wanting to be considered as works of art in the case of posters. THEATRE
Traditional Persian drama was expressed in various forms of comic satire (tam¯ash¯a) and mime (taqlid), as well as by narrative drama (naqq¯ali). In addition, there was religious drama (ta‘ziyeh-kh¯ani). The first Western-style forms of drama were only performed as of 1886, when Naser al-Din Shah ordered the construction of the Takiyeh-ye Dowlat (Royal Theatre) for the performance of religious drama. The first performance there was a Western play, however. For a time, modern plays became a fad among the elite. None of these performances were really public ones, however. Apart from the high cost of the tickets, which excluded most people, the performances were aimed at a limited target group: this included officials at the royal court and other members of the Persian elite, as well as leading members of the European and Armenian communities. Because this European form of theatre was new to Iran, there were as yet no plays written by Persian authors. Stage directors, therefore, had to use foreign plays as a vehicle for the introduction and dissemination of this type of dramatic art. Plays by Molière were the first to be translated, or rather to be adapted to a Persian audience. At least three plays by Moliére were translated, including Le Misanthrope (Goz¯aresh-e Mardomgoriz), which was published in Istanbul in 1286/1869–70. Other early translations were Le Médecin malgré lui (Tabib-e Ejb¯ari) and L’Etourdi (Gij). Of greater importance for the development of Persian drama were the works of Mirza Fath ‘Ali Akhundzadeh, who between 1850 and 1856 wrote six comedies in Azeri Turkish (the language of Azerbaijan). The plays of Akhundzadeh were translated into Persian by Mirza Ja‘far Qarajehdaghi, who in his preface stressed their educational intent. The trans- lations appeared first in Tehran in 1864, but the lithographed edition was almost as rare as the original manuscript, while it was also badly printed and thus difficult to read and full of mistakes. Given the fact that the play contained strong criticism of the system of 753
Contents Copyrights ISBN 92-3-103985-7 IRAN AND AFGHANISTAN government prevailing in Iran, it is understandable that it was not staged. Moreover, the shah had now lost interest in Western theatre, so no more plays were performed in Tehran after 1890 or thereabouts. TOWARDS A MODERN THEATRE A new boost to modern theatre was given by the advent of the constitutional revolution in 1905–11. In its wake, many plays were published and performed by newly created theatrical troupes. The first play performed in Tehran after the constitutional revolution was in Zahir al-Dowle’s hall (t¯al¯ar-kh¯aneh), behind the Anjoman-e Okhuvat building in November 1907. The revolution not only led to a wave of publications, but also to the performance of plays in the large towns, in particular in Tehran. 22 The relatively lively theatrical scene in Tehran and elsewhere prompted a number of writers to translate Euro- peans plays to be staged by the various troupes, but they also wrote their own original Persian plays. Ahmad Mahmudi Kamal al-Vezareh (1875–1930) wrote a number of plays, including Master Nowruz, the Cobbler (Ost¯ad Nowr¯uz-e Pinehd¯uz). Written in 1919, this play was clearly modelled after baqq¯al-b¯azi. It was also the first drama to use the argot of south Tehran. In his Haj Riya’i Khan, al-Vezareh created a Persian Tartuffe. Under the pseudonym ‘Ali Nowruz, Hasan Moqaddam (1898–1925) published Ja‘far Khan Has
(Ja‘far Kh¯an az Farang ¯ Amadeh ). This successful comedy pokes fun at those Europeanized Iranians who put on European airs and speak Persian with French words to project an image of modernity. Performances also took place in other Iranian towns such as Tabriz, Rasht, Kermanshah, Isfahan, Mashhad and Qazvin. The relative freedom that people had enjoyed after the constitutional revolution came Download 8.99 Mb. Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: 
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