Farkhondeh Ahmadzadeh on Manuscripts and Miniatures

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A new exhibition at the Aga Khan Centre Gallery in King’s Cross presents a series of miniature paintings by Iranian painter Farkhondeh Ahmadzadeh, inspired by the Haft Paykar (The Seven Beauties), a romantic allegorical poem of the medieval period written by Persian poet Niẓāmī Ganjavī in 1197.

In Seven Pavilions of Love, which runs until 1 December, the poem has been pictorially depicted and calligraphically scribed by Ahmadzadeh, whose practice has spanned over two decades. Following the tale of the transformation of King Bahrām from a worldly ruler dominated by earthly desires to becoming a wise ruler, the poem narrates his re-emergence from the seven pavilions after hearing the stories of the Seven Princesses, with the understanding of love as the guiding force for justice and spiritual enlightenment.

Eric Block spoke to artist, Farkhondeh Ahmadzadeh, along with curator of the exhibition, Esen Kaya.

What drew you to the story by Nizami Ganjavi?

Farkhondeh Ahmadzadeh: I used to sit at the British Library gazing at the old manuscripts. It would trigger all the senses in me. From the smell of centuries old paper, to seeing the beauty of calligraphy and illustrations, all the way to the softness of the burnished paper: I would find myself reading the poetry out loud and would lose sense of time. Since Nizami’s work is epic poetry, it lends itself to illustration. Reading them and seeing the illustration inspired me to work on his poetry – Haft Paykar specifically – since it demonstrated a journey from blackness to white, worldly to eternal love. It is a tale of transformation: King Bahrām sheds the monarch’s expected involvement in earthly matters for a higher calling based on discovering an understanding that love is the guiding force for justice and spiritual enlightenment. Since I see myself on a journey to find light, the story resonated with me deeply.

How has your background in Iran influenced your work and how was this developed in your move to London?

Learning calligraphy under master calligraphers in Iran since the age of 18 connected me more deeply with poetry. In the Nastalique script the text used most often is Persian poetry. The written words then are adorned with illumination. So the combination of the three (calligraphy, poetry and illumination) started in my early years in Iran. After my move to London and studying for my master degree at School of Traditional Arts, miniatures, and using natural pigments, were added to the skills I had learned in Iran.

Can you give us a bit more of a portrait of the life of the artists who created the original miniature works?

This is the way I envision it in my mind, based on what I have read and heard: a huge workshop of many artisans, everyone busy with a different task; some making the paper, others dying it; someone burnishing the paper, some others busy with drawing the lines; in one corner apprentices are grinding colours, or making ink; master calligraphers writing the texts, illuminators adorning the frontispieces and headers and borders with leaves and flowers using gold and deep bright colours; miniaturists specialising in different tasks, one painting the faces, another one horses, yet another one buildings…

The practice for me starts with the poetry itself.

I see the hustle and bustle of the workshop, all supported by the mighty wealthy king of the time, all their living necessities covered.

What lead you to work in miniatures?

As my love for manuscripts and poetry was getting stronger, I felt the need to be able to illustrate the scenes as well as illuminating a page. All these skills were complimentary to each other. In this day and age, unfortunately, those workshops do not exist anymore, so I decided to do as much as was possible. I knew I would not be able to do a whole manuscript in my lifetime on my own, so I decided to do a few pages of it.

Can you talk us through your process?

The process I am going to explain is not necessarily linear. It depends on the time of the year, my mood and other factors. Gathering the materials and preparing them takes a big chunk of time. In walnut season, I prepare the walnut ink. Autumn is the time to gather leaves, barks, and chestnut skins for dying the paper. Summer is time to collect and dry hollyhock flowers to make the paper smooth. When I feel physically strong, or not in the mood of painting details, I burnish the paper with an agate stone. Collecting pigments anywhere I travel to, or finding them in odd stores, and sometimes cultivating them through a long process of alchemy from metals. Then suspending the pigments with gum Arabic to make watercolour and storing them in shells… These are all part of the pre-painting process. Throughout this time, I am visualising the painting, and as the time passes that vision changes and evolves. Finally the time comes to sit down and use the handmade kitten brush and put it on the prepared paper…

Can you expand on how you find your work to be a spiritual practice?

The poetries that I choose to illustrate are all spiritual poetries, even though they are in form of stories. Reciting them and thinking about their meaning triggers something in the reader and I am no exception. So the practice for me starts with the poetry itself.

In this complex world where human kind is divided into tiny sections, I hope we can find the unity we are meant to have.

I see the process as a spiritual practice. It has to be done patiently with determination and mindfulness. Before entering my studio, and starting to paint, I tend to ask permission from the souls of poets, the great miniature masters to guide me through this process.

The release says it is a ‘timely and significant exhibition given the tensions in world affairs’ with the need for ‘peaceful dialogue and the re-establishment of human values’. Could you elaborate on this?

I am hoping, through these paintings, that everyone can see the beauty we all share and have within us, the essence that is common in all creation, no matter what the gender, race or religion. In this complex world where human kind is divided into tiny sections, I hope we all can share a common ground in this exhibition and find the unity we are meant to have.

Thank you, Farkhondeh. Esen – the installations look fantastic, almost like a museum show. What was your vision in bringing the show to life?

Esen Kaya: The vision was to create an opulent Persian-Palace-style interior as seen in Farkhondeh’s paintings and historical works from Aga Khan Museum’s collection. I wanted to emphasise the intricacy of Farkhondeh’s works by elevating it and placing it on shelves in order to heighten their status.

The concept was to suggest that King Bahrām himself had adorned the walls of his dome shaped palace with luxurious paintings – a celebration of his creation and the magnificence of the seven pavilions he had created. I had intended from the outset to add more conceptual and object-based detail, such as the candle holders which are placed either side of the paintings. These provide further importance to the works – a detail you wouldn’t normally expect in a contemporary gallery exhibition. These curatorial details elements have been sourced from a variety of places.

As curator I like to add personal touches that may not be normally considered. I feel this adds an element of intrigue – rather like the Gestalt approach to bring collective thoughts together. I always try to create something extraordinary, in a small way.

The large candle holders house commissioned miniature Persian vase and flowers made by miniatures artist Jan Southeron. The bouquet of flowers are those found in Farkhondeh’s paintings. It’s this attention to detail I am referring to.

The chandelier is a piece from a vintage shop in Cumbria, and the Persian Bakhtiari rug from circa 1920 is presented as a floor vinyl courtesy of Farhad Langaroodi of Nazmiyal Auctions. The works pay homage to traditional Persian miniature painting and manuscript work and are intensely detailed, so magnifying glasses have been provided to enable visitors to delve deeper into the detail.

There is an interview film created by Adam Tait in which Farkhondeh describes so eloquently the painting process and materials and methodologies she uses to create the works. It is truly inspiring. Other sensory elements include oud perfume in reed diffusers and instrumental music chosen by the artist, all of which enhance the overall ambience.

You’ve mentioned wanting an educational element to the exhibition. Can you talk more about that?

The exhibition includes educational boards produced by the artist which describe the making process and materials she uses to create the Persian miniature paintings – these include narrative and visuals exploring calligraphy, geometry, illumination and composition. There are a series of reference books from Aga Khan Library’s collection on Persian miniature paintings and Niẓāmī Ganjavī, including the complete poem of the Seven Beauties.

The interview film created by Adam Tait provides a more personal narrative from the artist on her practice which is included in the exhibition for visitors to enjoy. There are also materials on the paint-making process from sheets of 24 carat gold leaf to the grinding tools, raw pigments, shells that carry the paint once made and preparatory drawings on tracing paper. We hear this directly from her studio which is often hidden from view. We wanted to bring parts of her studio into the gallery and by doing this, share the fascinating range of tools and materials she uses.

There is also information on Aga Khan Museum’s work and the work of Aga Khan Development Network, so visitors are able to better understand our work and where we work.

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Image credit: Farkhondeh Ahmadzadeh at home in London. Photo: Jonathan Goldberg.

Eric Block was born in Berlin where he has worked for a number of contemporary art galleries, including Galleri Neu. He has contributed to a number of publications, including Monopole and Flash Art, and is currently writing a book on the 1990’s Berlin art scene.

Farkhondeh Ahmadzadeh is an Iranian artist based in London. Her work explores the disciplines of Persian poetry manuscripts, sacred geometry and Persian miniatures. She has worked both as an academic and artist in Iran, America and Europe. For the last 20 years, Farkhondeh has regularly spent time living and studying under calligraphy masters in Iran. She was awarded the Jerwood Prize in 2011 for Islamic traditional art and continues to teach Islamic manuscript and Persian miniature at the Princes School of Traditional Art. Her body of work on Haft Paykar, the epic poem of Nizami, has been exhibited in London in 2016 and in Scotland in 2017. Her painting showing the stages of Reza Abbasi’s ‘seated man’ is on permanent display in the Albukary gallery, British Museum.

Esen Kaya is the Gallery Curator at the Aga Khan Centre​. She is also an educator and visual artist working across drawing, painting, installation, craft and sculpture. Esen has worked in museums and galleries across the UK including Newlyn Art Gallery, National Glass Centre and The Customs House Arts Centre. She has curated over 130 exhibitions of work by regional, national and international artists, which include projects with James Turrell, Antony Gormley and Tanya Kovats. She is passionate about community-focused creative arts projects that enable people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds to access and engage with the arts and culture.

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