Process
IRAN, FIVE MILLENNIA OF ART AND CULTURE
Stefan Weber, Director of the Museum für Islamische Kunst:
When you think about the enormous cultural-historical significance of Iran, this exhibition is really long overdue. As in many countries in the region, our perceptions today are determined by political issues and contemporary concerns. For Iran, this has been particularly true since the Islamic revolution of 1979, which is a formative event in our collective memory. This exhibition seeks to independently showcase – though without losing sight of the present – a long-standing national culture that is of the utmost importance for us too. Indeed, it might be one of the most important cultures anywhere in the world. (Iran – Five Millennia of Art and Culture, 2022)
I visited the exhibition in March 2022 during my trip to Berlin. The exhibition space was a lot smaller than I had imagined. Reading about the programme and walking up to this totally grand and modern museum, I was expecting an expansive display of artefacts that spanned 5000 years of culture. But, we were ushered down to the basement floor, only to see one large-ish room with everything jammed into tight corridors with built-in vitrines that navigated like the Lazy River in Centre Parcs. I found myself fighting for a glance at all the exquisite pieces of jewellery and the decorated pottery with the senior citizens.
Luckily, the area surrounding the collection of Persian miniatures was pretty quiet. I was astonished by (believe it or not) their small size. I enjoy the flatness and skewed perspectives of the architectural elements in the miniatures. They reminded me of isometric drawings. Sometimes the script complimented the angle of the scenery in the paintings as if they were an extension of one another. The framing of the work was unique to each image; setting each story apart from the other. I would like to think that the frames I use in my work have a similar purpose, uniquely celebrating and contributing to the image they contain. Although, the physical frames exist separately from my painted photo album. I like to think of my paintings to have fallen from the frames hung on the wall. The subject matter of my work is very personal so I like to invite the viewer to have a personal experience with it.
A Persian miniature (Persian: نگارگری ایرانی negârgari Irâni) is a small Persian painting on paper, whether a book illustration or a separate work of art intended to be kept in an album of such works called a muraqqa. (Persian miniature - Wikipedia, 2022)
I like to think of my work as Persian miniatures.
I particularly like “Nauruz & Gul Consummate Their Marriage” - The page depicts a couple fornicating in their palace whilst sleepy guards wait outside. This image is very shocking to view as an Iranian who has grown up in post-revolution Iran. Such a taboo is displayed so openly in this museum. The flatness of the art style allows the inside and the outside to exist on one plane - kind of like a section drawing an architect would create for their building proposal. Capturing these individual experiences whilst giving a greater context to the story by being depicted in the same frame.
I enjoyed the colours in “Bahram Gur Slays the Dragon”. This frenetic scene is encased in light blue and lavender pigment. What I imagine is the smoke left by the dragon's destruction. The colours are soft and soothing but the brush strokes are sharp and jutting upwards, creating a sense of movement and chaos. The artist has depicted the end of the fight. The eyes of the dragon look defeated and it humbly floats amongst the blue and lavender ashes and smoke.
Smb.museum. 2022. Iran – Five Millennia of Art and Culture. [online] Available at: <https://www.smb.museum/en/exhibitions/detail/iran-five-millennia-of-art-and-culture/> [Accessed 14 June 2022].
En.wikipedia.org. 2022. Persian miniature - Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_miniature> [Accessed 14 June 2022].