Analysis of Characterization Features in Paintings of Tahmasebi Shahnameh

The first half of the 16th century is one of the most important cultural and artistic periods in Iran, in which painting grew at an unprecedented rate. Shah Tahmaseb I ascended the throne in Tabriz in 1524 and supported artists until the transfer of the center of rule to Qazvin in 1548, due to his intense interest in painting. He moved many artists from the schools of Timurid Herat, Turkmen Tabriz and Shiraz to his court. This is how one of the most brilliant schools of painting in Iran flourished in Tabriz.
One of the most important illustrated versions of this period is the great Shahnameh called "Tahmasebi Shahnameh" which, in addition to its excellent quality, can be referred to for creativity and variety in the characterization of its drawings. This copy was compiled in the library of the Safavid court in Tabriz and contains 258 images and prominent artists of that time collaborated in illustrating these assemblies
Undoubtedly, the diversity of characters in the literary text of Shahnameh has played an important role in this development, but the most important factor is the time of creation of this great version, which was formed during the intellectual and artistic maturity of one of the most prominent schools of painting in Iran, which itself was under the strong support of the court and this has led to the innovation and creativity of artists and sometimes the deconstruction of previous rules. What this research seeks to identify is the qualitative characteristics and diversity of different types of characterization in Tahmasebi Shahnameh drawings.
The research hypothesis acknowledges that the painters of Tahmasebi Shahnameh, while adhering to the literary and artistic traditions in drawing, tended to deconstruct and innovate in characterization. The question is: What qualitative features have been used in the characterization of the Tahmasebi Shahnameh drawings? Considering the special place of Tahmasebi Shahnameh, which is a great treasure of Safavid art that has been effective on the process of Shahnameh writing in the history of Iranian painting, recognizing various features in characterization and different approaches to painting faces and iconography of this version matters, while little research has been focused on it.
This research in terms of method is historical-analytical, and data was collected using library research method and documented material. The statistical population consists of 9 miniatures that include various visual capabilities, abundance of iconography and characterization, which are illustrated in different parts of Shahnameh. These drawings are in order of review: 1-Kiomars Court, 2-The killing of the black demon, 3-The court of Jamshid, 4-Seeing Zal by the caravan,5-Rostam's battle with Afrasiab, 6- Kikaus goes to heaven, 7- Conquest of Bahman Castle, 8- The story of Haftavad and Karam, 9- Young Shapur in the court. The method of analysis of the selected society is qualitative, based on the types of characters from the two perspectives of narrative and image, and the way of their representation.
The studies that have been done so far on the paintings of Tahmasebi Shahnameh are more from the point of view of visual arts and aesthetic aspects, and the painter's approach to characterization has rarely been considered; hence, no source was found that was related to the problem and objectives of the research.
The studies of the present research indicate that in terms of narration, there is a significant variety in all types of characters in the drawings of Tahmasebi Shahnameh and artists have had no restrictions in drawing narrative characters. In analyzing the characteristics of characterization, the important point is that artists have tangibly gone beyond the norm and deconstructed. This deconstruction is most evident in the display of facial expressions, strange and abnormal body movements, and exaggeration in human proportions. The authors of this version, in characterizations, did not consider themselves obliged to follow the defined rules and in order to create new characters and the best visual expression, had the courage to break any pre-determined principles and rules.
The deconstructive features in the characterizations of this Shahnameh are such that some of the characters seem very different; to the extent that Eva Beer, a scholar of Islamic art, also acknowledges about the Tahmasebi Shahnameh that some of the figures in this version are "caricatures". The artists of the Tahmasebi Shahnameh have ridiculed the characters of the story and have depicted fat and big-bellied, thin and tall, staggering and thin as well as complaining figures. However, it must be acknowledged that this deconstruction does not include all characters. Rather, it consists mostly of base and ugly characters, and the main characters and some important court figures of the narrative have not undergone the changes that were introduced as deconstructive features in characterization.