Analysis ofAacademic Studies in the Field of Varni (Sumak) over the Last Four Decades

Research in the field of kilim and its different types have attracted specific position among academic studies and has been addressed from various perspectives in the last two decades. Meanwhile, studies have been done over Varni. Varni is a kind of kilim which is woven by the women and girls of Shahsavan tribe mentally and without any paper maps, using a Sumak technic in the north-west of Iran. Considering the prevalent nomadic lifestyle, these Varnies used to be used as rugs, salt bags, saddle bags, mafrash, and cover horse. There is little written information about the history of this weave due to the oral culture of the nomads and the lack of knowledge of weavers' theory information despite their practical skills.  Categories displayed in Table one represent the literature review in Varni. Analysis with this methodology is widespread in basic science and subjects that are related to handicraft, such as Varni have been less discussed in Iran. Research  similar to this article is an article titled "Study of  handi-crafts theses in Art university based on approved regulations of Art university: Case Study of Graduate theses from September 2012 to September 2017" that published in Journal of Visual & Applied Art by Samanian and Babaei in 2021. The discovery of the strengths and weaknesses of theses and improvement of the quality of the future works of research in the field of handicrafts was the aim of this article. The main aim of this study, however, is to analyze Varni's studies in the field of kilim's studies and classify the works of research  done in this field. Thus the researcher has analyzed and reviewed academic studies in the field of Varnies by identifying thirty-four dissertations, master's theses and articles.; Moreover , to introduce all research  done over this subject and avoid repetitive research, this study may pave the way for the researchers and can shed the light on the direction of future research in this field. This study  has been conducted by descriptive-analytical method and the data are collected based on library resources.Identifieing forty-nine sources about Varnies by researching in Various databases, such as National Library of Iran, Irandoc, Magiran and Civilica with keywords, including sumak, needle kilim, handwovens of Ardebil and shahsavan and Varni (Because everyone uses different names for this handwoven and different textiles are not classified appropriately). After reviewing the statistical population, thirty-four articles, master's theses, and dissertations resources were considered for the final analysis.Written sources are less than half a century old regarding the Varni feild, and the first published reference refers to Varni in 1985. It was Parvez Tanavoli (1985) who first discussed Shahsavan textile mentionining Varni among others shahsavan textile productions. He published a book in English called "Shahsavan Iranian Rugs and Textiles".  On the account of foreign resources, John.T.Wertim (1998), authored a book titled "Sumak Bags of Northwest Persian and Transcaucasia" and emphasized the importance of khorjin, salt bag and mafrash. Although the issue of Varni was neglected in the 60 decades (solar calender), it has received more academic studies in the 90s. From the whole sources of Varni that were analyzed and reviewed,  twenty- one articles, eleven master theses and two dissertations. Were chosen for further conteplation The articles have been published in various journals, and six journals have been evaluated in the fields of humanities, art & architecture by the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology. Quarterly Scientific-Research Goljaam Iran Carpet Scientific Association has dealt with this subject  more than other journals.Researchers have considered  general introduction of varnies, tools and techniques, economic contexts, socio-cultural contexts, and the design and motifs of Varnies. Most studies have been done in design and motif of Varni. The use of Varni motifs in modern life and decoration, a comparative study of these motifs (Shahsavan tribe) with the hand-woven motifs of other tribes, including the Qashqai and Caucasian tribes, the symbolic motifs, such as rain and life symbol in Varnies,  the structure of  Moharramat design and some motifs, such as the peacock and Swastika have been investigated.  Salt bags and rugs have been the most popular among the various Varni products.Moreover in his dissertation , Saadati (2021) utilized the structuralist approach and its most important component, binary opposition, in analysis of the Varnies (rugs, salt bags, saddle bags, mafrash and cover horse). The study of these works was done synchronously, and given that the human mind understands the structure of the world and the rules of action can be obtained by discovering the basic elements.The present research aims to extract the motifs and relationships between them as well as to develop a structural model of Varni products. Still more, Izadi.jeiran investigated from an anthropological perspective based on Howard Morphy theories the Varnis of Lome-Dara village.Researchers with different fields and from various universities worked in this field. Researchers studied in different majors, including handicrafts (4), art research (3), visual communication (3), illustration (1), carpet design (1) and sociology (1) and from the universities of Tehran ( 2), Al-Zahra (2), Science and Art of Yazd (2), Islamic Azad university (2), Sooreh, Art University of Isfahan, Tabriz  Islamic  Art  University, Tehran university of art and Semnan university graduated. Among sixty researchers, thirty-three women and twenty-seven men have worked in this field. Although, considering this subject as feminine art, men also care for that. As mentioned above, the use of the word Varni is less than half a century in the publishing discourse, but special attention has been paid to it in  academic fields in the last decade. The researchers of handicrafts major, then visual communication and art research more than other fields have addressed the subject of Varni in their master's theses and doctoral theses. This subject (Varni) has more capable and application in these disciplines apparently.In Varnies research, tools and techniques, economic field and socio-cultural field have recieved less attention. In contrast, designs and motifs have been considered widely. Thanks to its unique features of Varni, such as subjective and abstract motifs, it has occupied more than eighty percent of the studies. The symbolic study of these motifs, the structure of various design, the use of designs in other contemporary arts (graphic design, illustration, decoration, etc..( The researchers conducted the comparative study of these motifs with the handwoven motifs of other ethnic groups (Qashqai and Caucasus).However, it is possible to study the subject of design and the motif of Varnies from different and other theories such as anthropology and ethnography. Considering the limited sources of Varni, it is worth mentioning that Parviz Tanavoli's book, which was the first resource that refers to Varni, is available in English language and has not been translated into Persian language yet. Also the book about Khorjin, Mafarsh, and saltbags in the north-west of Iran and the Caucasus is also available in English language (not translated into Persian language).   The review of Shahsavan nomads' handwovens book is also witten in English language. This book contains a worthwhile  visual resource about different kind of Varnies, especially saltbags (Namakdan).  Cover horse (Jole- asb) was translated by Nazila Daryaei into Persian language, nevetheleess.  Various type of handwoven of Shahsavan tribe are appealing in an international area due to their unique features.