Kamal-ol-Molk

Mohammad Gaffari Kasani (Persian محمد غفاری کاشانی Mohammad Ghaffari Kashani ), known under the name Kamāl -ol - Molk ( کمالالملک Kamāl al - Molk, * 1847 in Kashan, † 1940 in Nishapur ), was an Iranian painter and applies as a pioneer of modern art in Iran.

  • 5.1 Sources for this Article
  • 5.2 Further Reading 5.2.1 English
  • 5.2.2 Persian

Life

Kamāl -ol - Molk was born into a significant and influential family of artists. Already his uncle Mirza Abol Hassan Ghaffari Khān was famous as a miniature painter and his father Mirza Bozorg Ghaffari Kashani had founded the Iranian school of painting.

After completing primary school Kamāl -ol - Molk went to the Dar -ol Fonun school to Tehran. Here he made such great progress that he was appointed at the age of 18 years as court painter to the court Nasreddin Shah. As a sign of appreciation for his perfection gave him this title Kamāl -ol - Molk, under which he remained well known. During his time at the court of Nasreddin Shah mainly portraits, landscape paintings, representations of royal hunting grounds and different parts of royal palaces arose. Kamāl -ol - Molk was characterized here mainly by its fine brushwork and the preference for bright and vivid colors.

In-depth studies in Europe

1898 went Kamāl - ol-Molk at the age of 49 years for in-depth studies to Europe to the Louvre in Paris, to Versailles and Florence. There he spent four years in which he came into contact with eminent artists. He also studied the works of Rembrandt van Rijn's widmetet, Raphael, Titian and Leonardo da Vinci. Primarily he learned here, however, the principles of realistic art.

In 1902, he met with Mozaffar ad-Din Shah together in Paris, who invited him to return to Iran. Kamāl -ol - Molk accepted the invitation and also painted a portrait of Mozaffar ad-Din Shah. His new, more realistic style seemed at the court Mozaffar ad-Din Shah, however, not to have been in high demand, so he left Iran in 1903 and again by the Ottoman province of Mesopotamia ( modern Iraq ) traveled. Inspired by the new environment he created some of his most famous works, such as the soothsayer of Baghdad ( Fālgīr -e Baghdād ), the goldsmith of Baghdad and his student ( Zargar -e Baghdād wa Schāgerd - ash ), the Kerbala Square ( Meidan - e Karbalā ) and the sleeping Arabs (Arab -e Khofteh ).

Establishing the Kamāl -ol - Molk Art School

The outbreak of the Constitutional Revolution in Iran led Kamāl -ol - Molk again to return to Iran. The increased appreciation that has now shown him as an artist, he helped establish his Sanaye Mostazraf or Kamāl -ol - Molk Art School, which should play an important role for modern art in Iran. The school's aim was to promote new talent as possible and to use gifted students within a very short time. Many of his students were therefore later even to famous artists: as for example, Hossein Ali Khan Vasiri, Mohsen Soheili, Esmail Ashiani etc. In addition to painting the school also taught in carpet weaving, mosaic design and woodwork..

A part of its own content devoted Kamāl -ol - Molk promoting poor students. In 1927, he lost an eye due to an accident. He handed over the management of his art school and retired after Hossein Ābād, a village near Nishapur from back. He painted only rarely. 1933 was a painting of the newly erected statue Firdausi and 1935 he painted a landscape study and the painting Sleeping old man.

Kamāl -ol - Molk died 1940. He was buried in Nishapur next to the Sufidichter Attar.

Work

Kamāl -ol - Molk was an extremely prolific painter. Many of his numerous works are destroyed or in private collections, so they are no longer accessible to the public. There, movements of the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, the National Consultative Assembly, the Golestanpalast as well as other museums and art centers. In addition to watercolors and sculptures, it is primarily his oil paintings, for which he is known.

Among his most famous works are already mentioned in addition to the above, the Twin Waterfalls ( The twin waterfalls) (1882 ), the Golestanpalast (1883 ), Emāmeh Village ( The Emāmeh village) (1884), Bāgh -e Shah ( The King's Garden ) (1886 ), Zanoosi Valley ( the Valley Zanusi ) ( 1886), Government Camp ( the Government Camp ) ( 1889), the goldsmith, Two girls and beggars the soothsayer ( from 1889 ), respectively. But his masterpiece is The Mirror Hall ( Hall of Mirrors ) ( 1885-1890 ).

Gallery

Golestanpalast

Self-portrait

Two girls

Predictor of the future

Life filming

His life and work has been portrayed by filmmaker Ali Hatami in the film Kamalolmolk (1984).

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