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The Ninth Commemoration of Master Jalil Ziapour – Mah-e Mehr Cultural and Artistic Institute
On Tuesday afternoon, 23 December 2008, a commemoration ceremony was held at the Mah-e Mehr Cultural and Artistic Institute on the occasion of the ninth anniversary of the passing of “Jalil Ziapour.”
At this ceremony, which was organized through the efforts of the Ziapour family, a group of artists and masters such as (Mahmoud Javadipour, Alireza Sami-Azar, Hossein Mahjoubi, Lilit Teryan, and …) gathered in appreciation of more than half a century of Ziapour’s relentless efforts in the field of Iranian culture and art, and honored his memory.
In addition, 7 of the works left behind by Ziapour, titled “My Life,” “A Window to the Inner World,” “Flight into the Unknown,” “Kurdish Woman of Quchan,” “Mahsha,” “Lur Girl,” and “My Husband is Applying Henna,” were put on display, and a documentary film was also screened, which included an interview by (Gilsha Ziapour – the master’s son) with Messrs. Javad Mojabi, Ahmad Esfandiari, Mahmoud Javadipour, and Mrs. Shahin Saber Tehrani (the master’s wife) regarding Ziapour’s artistic standing and perspective.
Then, (Mahsha – the master’s daughter) welcomed the attendees in a brief speech, and subsequently, masters Abbas Mashhadizadeh, Mehdi Hosseini, Parviz Kalantari, and Mohammad Ebrahim Jafari delivered speeches in turn in appreciation of the valuable cultural and artistic labors and services of Jalil Ziapour.
Abbas Mashhadizadeh said in his speech: Ziapour was undoubtedly the first person to raise the banner of seeking the new and fighting the old, and with this movement, he was able to draw after him the great army that we have witnessed over these 60 years. I, and many people like me, are indebted to Master Ziapour; he began this modernism in days when he faced insults and hostility, and he stood firm against them and paid a heavy price for his words, views, and teachings; for if he had not existed, the entire movement of modernism in today’s painting would not exist either.
Then, Mehdi Hosseini — painter and university professor — delivered a speech about the character of Jalil Ziapour. He said: In addition to the arts of painting and sculpture, Ziapour also engaged in research and authoring various books; he published over 40 volumes of books and wrote more than 60 articles that were printed in the prestigious publications of that era. Continuing, this painter referred to Ziapour’s modernist outlook in the 1940s and said: Ziapour is one of the pioneers who, in addition to introducing new art after September 1941, and confronting the regressive outlook prevailing in the visual arts scene of that time, wrote against this outlook in numerous articles: “What is done as miniature painting has neither a basis in Iranian art nor possesses any artistic value.” Saying these words in an era that lacked the necessary and suitable atmosphere for expressing such beliefs was no simple task, and by writing that article, he created many enemies for himself. At that time, it was said that Ziapour’s works had no affinity with the traditional culture of Iran, but by looking at the works of this artist, we see that the new outlook and modernism are manifest in works whose fountainhead is our traditional culture. Yet, because people at that time could not relate to this artist’s modern outlook, they rose up in hostility against him.
Hosseini also referred to one of this artist’s outstanding works titled “Zeynab Khatoon,” which is derived from a folk poem and was chosen as the best work in the first Iran Painting Biennial in the year 1958, and described the beginning of his acquaintance with Ziapour as starting with the display of this very work at the Iran Painting Biennial, which left a very great impact on him.
Mehdi Hosseini also cited the founding of the Fine Arts Schools for Boys and Girls as another of the late Ziapour’s activities, saying: The level of education in these art schools was much higher than many of our colleges today, and from these art schools came artists such as Tanavoli, Zenderoudi, Arabshahi, and Pilaram, who are all renowned figures of Iranian painting.
Parviz Kalantari, writer and painter, also said about Ziapour’s works: Many works by this artist are kept at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, which, unfortunately, the Ziapour family was not able to borrow from the museum to display in this gallery.
He also said regarding Ziapour’s artistic style: Artistic styles emerge in the natural course of art according to historical necessity, and they cannot be issued through government directives.
In another part of his speech, Kalantari said: We have been brought up in such a way that we want everything from the government, whereas many artistic matters have nothing to do with the government.
He added: The former Soviet Union did not tolerate any kind of innovation and dictated the style of Socialist Realism to all artists. However, throughout history we have observed that wherever the government has intervened and wanted to issue a style, it has not succeeded.
Kalantari further asserted: The works of the late Ziapour not only deserve to be displayed in a museum, but they also deserve to be exhibited in a dedicated museum, and this will happen.
Mohammad Ebrahim Jafari was the last speaker at this ceremony, who began his remarks with a quote from Ziapour, who had said: “Live with confidence in the path of your dreams; live the life you have imagined.”
Continuing, this painter went on to recount memories of the late Ziapour, who had told him and Gholamhossein Nami: It is this difference in perspective that shapes the artist within; which kind of painters are you, painters who copy, or painters who make visible things out of the unseen?
He added: Ziapour moved forward in the path of his dreams until the very last moment, and was able to fight against regressiveness for years.
In another part of his speech, criticizing the method of art education in Iran, Jafari said: It is futile for a painter to want to transfer their mindset to the student. Rather, we must start the foundations of creative imagination from our schools, because creativity belongs to the creative mind.
At the conclusion of this ceremony, Mahsha Ziapour, the daughter of the late Ziapour, announced the launch of Jalil Ziapour’s dedicated website at the address.
And finally, the ceremony, which had begun at 5 PM, concluded at 9 PM.
Source: Aftab Website
