The Links between Art and Politics during the Qajar Era and Its Consequences

In the assessment of art history in Qajar era, in addition to their aesthetic elements, the social, historical, and political processes influencing on the formation of the works must be taken into account. These studies never detract from the values of the artworks, but demonstrate the share of ultra-aesthetic elements in them. The historical evidence of Qajar era reveals to us some manifestations of the impact of policies, especially those of the governmental elite1, on the art of this period. The headlines of governmental offices, orders, notifications, circulars, and political themes of the artwork are evidenced. In the second half of Qajar government, the growth of modern ideas created a new discursive space, the development of which had a significant impact on the emergence of artistic styles and appearance of eclectic styles.
Focus on the interaction between art and politics and analysis of the factors affecting the formation of artwork are among the topics that have been less paid attention to by the researchers in this field. Yet, from among the factors influencing on the creation of works of art, governance policies have played a decisive role. The two fundamental questions this paper was formed to answer were what relationship there has been between art and politics during the Qajar era and what factors have influenced on it. This article aimed at evaluating how the governing elite dealt with artists, artworks, and their outcomes by using a descriptive-analytical method. The article has been further theoretically inspired by the relationship between knowledge and power based on Michel Foucault’s thoughts. Therefore, according to Foucault’s theories and viewpoints on the relationship between knowledge and power, the relations between art and politics were analyzed. The results of this study were indicative of the interactions between politics and art in the form of politics supporting art, and in some cases, contrasting it, the manifestations of which could be found in the critical aspects of the works of art.