Sensory Perception and Cultural Values in the Art of Pardeh-Xani

My anthropological focus is on experience and perception of audience of Pardeh-Xani affected by sensory anthropology in which culture is defined as the ways of sensing the world. The art of Pardeh-Xani seeks to create special sensory experience to make sensory meaning and values. Although The Pardeh is a visual medium، its experience goes beyond of seeing it and although should be heard goes beyond of listening and engaged by tactile sense of audience in the end. Therefore، Pardeh-Xani art is a multisensory art. Pictures and Figures are seen، masculared and touched. Touching of the Pardeh shows a cultural synaesthesia that conveys sensory values and meaning. This essay based on my experience in one of Pardeh-Xani performance in Tabriz، seeing and picturing of some Pardehs in the Cultural Heritage Organization، and dialogues and older versions of Pardeh-Xani in a documentary film by Hadi Afarideh، Surat-Xani. Mainstream of the anthropology of art ignored multisensoriality of so-called visual arts and objects. Emergence of anthropology of the senses by pioneering works of David Howes and Constance Classen in early 1990s changed the situation. Sensory anthropologists challenged occularcentrism in the thought of western culture to be applied other cultures. This critique is correct in the case of Pardeh-Xani. The essay divided to three sections. Sensory techniques of Pardeh-kesh include visual pressure، emotional faces، beautiful and ugly faces، serenity and turbulence of figures، and freshness and moisty of Pardeh. Serenity and turbulence of faces and figures cause bodily and muscular effects which shows synaesthesia. Therefore، seeing Pardeh in not seeing icons that described in it but seeing Pardeh is embodiment of it and especially is a form of muscular perception. Serenity and turbulence as visual and muscular perceptions of Pardeh show sensory values of culture: entering heaven is associated with serenity and throw to hell is associated with turbulance. Ear also engaged in the art of Pardeh-Xani with artistic activity of Pardeh-Xan. The main goal here is the making of a kind of affection in the audience. Pardeh-Xan has especial skill in singing which adapted by age and sex of audience. The sense of specch is more than the sense of hearing: power of words which comes from the mouth of Pardeh-Xan. The sound of pardeh-Xan makes icons more clear and more transparenty. Words concentrated on religious events and ethical advices. The final phase of Pardeh-Xani in my idea is the most important phase. The audience touches the painting and icons of it. Hand، skin and the body contact with sacred figures to bring some energies to corporeal entity of audience. Touching icons makes a direct and intimate relationship between individual and sacred persons which doesn''t happen in the other religious ceremonies of Islam in Iran. Handling icons and then touching the hand to face means entering these energies to the head holes: nose، ear، mouth.