Process
Iran: My Grandfather - A Book written by Ali Alizadeh.
Iran: My Grandfather is a book written by Ali Alizadeh... who happens to be my cousin. The book tells Iran's political journey, during the 20th century, through the narrative of our Grandfathers life. Alizadeh blends personal exploration with historical events in aid of finding his identity. I haven't finished the book yet so I won't say anymore. Here is a description of the book I found on the publishers website:
"A vanished, tattered black and white photograph, taken in Tehran in 1946. The image of a sombre and inscrutable middle-aged man called Salman Fuladvand, a lieutenant and controversial police chief under Iran’s second last king. It is the memory of this photograph that begins Ali Alizadeh’s story of his grandfather Salman’s life, spanning Salman’s youthful devotion to the advancement of his country and the emancipation of Iranian women, his conflicts with the shahs, his wrongful imprisonment, and his eventual embracing of Sufi mysticism."
‘Iran, My Grandfather is a work of recovery, resistance, and affirmation. I think one can say without risk of hyperbole that it is one of the most remarkable texts ever to have been published in Australia.’ John Kinsella (Transit Lounge, 2010)
Although this isn't the picture mentioned in the book, it is very close to the time. Taken in 1949 my father is the baby in the hands of my smiling Grandmother and my famous Grandfather is sitting next to her. This picture is a rare occasion where my Grandfather is not wearing his shades to cover his left eye that he lost in gunfight. The little girl on the left with her hand on my Grandmother's knee is Ame - aunt on father's side - Pari. Her house has been the main subject of my paintings in Unit 1.
References:
Alizadeh, A., 2010. Iran: My Grandfather. Melbourne: Transit Lounge.
Transit Lounge (2010). Iran: My Grandfather. [online] Transit Lounge. Available at: https://transitlounge.com.au/shop/iran-my-grandfather/ [Accessed 1 Feb. 2022].