A Deconstructive Reading of the Persian Painting " The Drawing Out of Yusof from the Well"

This essay has attempted to apply the main concepts of Jacques Derrida’s deconstruction theory to the Persian painting “The Drawing out of Yusof from the Well”.A methodological frame comprises signification, reversing binary oppositions,aporia, parergon, narrative, intertextuality and decenterism. In a deconstructive analysis,binary oppositions like men and women, day and night, cold and warm colors are connected without superiority. Spectators face questions which have unlimited answers and entangle them in aporia. Considering a parergon will help the spectator come up with another reading or another meaning of a certain text.There is also no center. The center has lost its function. The artist has put the center, which is related to the title, in the corner. The work is not autonomous. It has a relationship with other texts like the story of Yusof in the Qura’n and ancient myths. The signs prevalent in the sketch can also be traced back to other texts. Thus, we can find a deconstructive logic behind this work. There is no final meaning and signification and the artist’s ideas in forming the painting follow Derrida’s concepts and theories.