نشریه پژوهش هنر
پیاپی 5 (بهار و تابستان 1392)

Blue and white ceramics is one of the most important and abundant types of glazed ceramics in the Islamic world, particularly during the late Islamic period. There are some questions regarding this ceramics which have not been answered yet; for instance, where and when was such kind of ceramics first produced? According to archaeological evidence, Iran produced such kind of ceramics from at least early Islamic time. Therefore, the current study aims to explore this type of ceramics in Iran based on published resources as well as evidence uncovered through archaeological excavations. The study shows that in Iran, from the sixth century onwards, different types of blue and white ceramics in numerous centers and with different methods have been produced. Although in the span of first to fifth centuries (A.H) numerous pieces of blue and white ceramics in centers such as Nishapur and Susa have been identified, the evidence showing their local production is absent and most results are based on scientific experiments

As the most abstract art, music has always been free from expression in the ups and downs of its history. But, depending on the time, it has sometimes been at the service of religious and ritual beliefs or artistic frames and conventions, sometimes it was affected by court costumes or ups and downs of ordinary people’s taste or it was used for demonstrating and describing the nature, phenomena and images behind the words of poets and writers. Regarding the results of previous studies, it seems that the role of architecture and city as the theme and origin of inspiration for composers has been investigated less. However, after the Romantic Movement in music and the importance of individual feelings in art, the confrontation of musicians with architecture, space and the image of cities motivated their emotions and thought which led to the creation of great works in the history of music. Thus, the main aim of this research is to find homologies between music and architecture via analyzing seven works of program music in Romantic and post-Romantic style. To achieve this aim, while analyzing these seven works by using descriptive-analytical method and library sources, the homologies between architecture and music are also explored. Some results of this study are as following: a) in the projection of concrete space of architecture onto abstract space of music, the mimesis of sounds which have a key and symbolic role in urban spaces contributes to the associative role of music and leads the mind to the main subject, b) the musical intervals of notes and the scale used in music, expressions, sentences and melodies, irrespective of instruments with which they are performed, can suggest feelings similar to architecture and pictorial association is created due to their internal features and numerical proportions, c) the vocal color and resonance of instruments can cause the incarnation of architectural materials or sensory quality of spaces in the mind of listeners. For each result several examples are proposed.

From the beginning of sixties, modern art appeared in America and continued in different branches such as conceptual art, video art, installation art, earth art, minimal art and body art.Iran, too, kept pace with such an art from the beginning but, due to the lack of an authentic source about the beginning and evolution of Persian modern art, the author of this article aims to identify the branches and active artists of such an art through field study. Although two exhibitions of conceptual art and modern art held in Tehran’s museum of contemporary art in 80 and 81 are the main bases of this research’s statistical universe, most examples cited in this article are the results of field study of artistic works exhibited in galleries in recent years.Since photography has been always present in all branches of modern art, this article aims to elucidate the role of photography in modern art.Investigating the mentioned works, it is concluded that, due to the instability of some modern works, photo is the unique tool for preserving the branches of modern art and, in some works, it is not only a recording tool but also the main medium.Thus, this research attempts to, first, state a summary of historical evolution and the beginning of modern art in Iran by mentioning a number of works by Persian artists. Then, the importance and use of photography is explored both as an element for recording and permanency and as the raw material and main element of artistic works in some branches of modern art including conceptual art, video art and earth art which is used mostly in Iran.

Decoration is one of the most important distinctive features of Islamic art and architecture in Iran. The intentional application of patterns on dadoes, dome and door of Chaharbaq School is for creating deep aesthetic impressions in patterns, on the one hand, and for especial expression or style, on the other hand. This research aims to answer the following question: which elements and techniques do have the main role in the decorations of entrance of Chaharbaq School in Isfahan? Moreover, the distribution of these elements in the composition of the work and their special characteristics are explored in this research.By using descriptive-analytical method and knowing that the entrance of Chaharbaq School in Isfahan has Islamic architecture, the metal decorations of this work are classified and analyzed regarding the dispersion of patterns and techniques via gathering data and carrying out field studies. The concatenation of plant and geometric ornaments, Persian poems and hadiths nabavi (Prophetical sayings) through the high arts of embossing, gilding and silver filigree on the entrance of this scientific-religious complex shows the artistic features of Safavid era and the discernment of designers and builders manifested in the conceptual accordance of inscriptions and patterns with religious and scientific functions of this school.

Based on their specifications, artistic legacies in Yazd represent the political, cultural and religious history of this desert territory. The study of the existing inscriptions in the Jame’ mosque of Yazd as a work of art and historical document is both essential and valuable because it can elucidate a part of art’s history and also be useful for restoring some of these works. Moreover, the previous studies on these inscriptions are very general and have simply descriptive purposes. The methodology of this research is descriptive-analytical and some of the features and content of these inscriptions are investigated via field study and library sources.While providing a definition of inscription, qualitative and quantitative studies have also been done. This research attempts to answer the following questions: Is there any relationship between the content of the inscriptions and the political, cultural and social condition of the time? What type of decoration has been used in the inscriptions to be more effective? Is it possible to classify the inscriptions based on their contents and structures?The results of this research show that subject, content, functional and structural diversity of inscriptions express the significant influence of the rulers, artists, settlers, and their religious and secular motivations to maintain, establish or complete this precious monument which have been stated in some inscriptions.

When most of Persian lands were suffering from insecurity and economical stagnations resulted from Mongol attacks, the Yazd city became the shelter of scientists, sufis and artists because of having Persian local government. Due to business boom, the city faced with many changes and basic attempts were done for constructing theological schools and monasteries. The establishment of various schools such as Rokniyeh, Shamsiyeh, Kamalieh and Hossainiyan can be pointed out as the most important fruits of those attempts. The mentioned buildings are valuable memorials from eight century that, due to their intact decorations, reliable data can be extracted from them. On the other hand, the study of unique architectural inscriptions of these monuments can guide us to a comprehensive plan of eight century art of “Katibeh-neghari-ye Memari” (making architectural inscriptions). Furthermore, it can provide answers to questions regarding materials and techniques, religious themes and decorative features of mentioned inscriptions.For these reasons, considering the valuable and exceptional opportunity which was provided to study these works (from near) during a time section, while proposing a brief introduction of the mentioned buildings, it is tried to investigate, record and compare the content of inscriptions as well as identify and classify the materials and methods used for making them in the four mentioned buildings. Techniques of inscription in the mentioned buildings include drawing, plaster work inside the building and tile-work outside the building, and the main decoration is calligraphy (writing inscription). Most inscriptions have Quranic verses and God’s names. The data of this research was collected via library sources and field studies and the method of research is descriptive-comparative. Before completing this article, it was probable that Naskh script was used in these inscriptions but the results of this study show that in such period the application of Kufic and Thulth scripts was current.

As a capital of Safavid dynasty, Qazvin city had many beautiful buildings which, after the transference of capital from Qazvin to Isfahan, gradually destroyed due to lack of attention. The most important point is that many of these destroyed or remained buildings, in addition to be namesake with Isfahan’s buildings such as Baq–e Saadat Abad, ChehelSotun, Jahan–Nama palace, Ali Qapu etc, are similar to them in some other aspects. As an example, the plan of Isfahan’s ChaharBagh is similar to the plan of Dolati Street in the south side of Baq–e Saadat Abad of Qazvin (of course in a wider scale), or the similarity between ChehelSotun palace of Isfahan and that of Qazvin with its fountain. In this article, while proposing a brief explanation of the formation of the two cities and aforementioned buildings, the way of their destruction and description of their present role, we are going to determine some models used in the planning of such buildings as well as urban spaces of Isfahan. Finally, a comparison is made between them in terms of ornaments, scale and other factors. In this regard, the main question of this research is about the differences and similarities between some of the urban planning and architectural elements of Isfahan and Qazvin in Safavid era which is answered by using qualitative and quantitative research methods.

Islamic art moves from the surface of existence to the depth of truth. As the Vicegerent of God, man creates a kind of art to which his divine nature is linked directly. Accordingly, it may be possible to find out the mystery behind various manifestations of Islamic art and the source of unifying principles of art may be identified temporally and spatially. Thus, it is clear that the origin of Islamic art and the essence of forces and principles creating such an art should be related to Islamic ideology. This art crystallizes the internal truths of Islamic inspirations in the universe of forms and since it originates from the inner dimension of Islam, it guides human being to the inner privacy of divine inspiration.For an exact understanding of religious art’s nature, especially Islamic art, it is necessary to pay attention to the principles governing all forms of Islamic art from the beginning. Beauty is one of these principles. Hence, the main hypothesis of this article is whether Islamic art can be considered as the origin of knowledge and spirituality.The method applied in this research is library and field study by which the beauty and Islamic art are explored. Also, the semantic roots of each of them are discussed from different viewpoints. Finally, the principles governing Islamic art and its nature are stated via diagrams. The results of this study show a number of differences between Islamic and secular arts. The main origin of Islamic art should be sought in monotheism, beauty and its intrinsic nature which cause the descent of divine truths to the earth.