پژوهشی در آثار و احوال میرزا عبدالرزاق کاشی‌پز: پیشگام کاشی‌نگاران شیراز در عصر قاجار

The art of tiling in Iran during the Qājār period (especially from the Nāser al-Dīn Shāh onwards) was influenced by the archaic spirit of the court, its connection with the Western cultures and its artistic themes, the introduction of new media such as photography and printing, and finally the Persian Constitutional Movement. In some important cities of the country, such as Shirāz, tile paintings have gained such status and prestige among the people that it has been referred to as the "folk movement of painting on tiles." The deep connection that was established between the tile-painters and the society during this period led to the creation of works that not only adorned the homes of ordinary people but also were a mirror of their hidden and apparent tastes, beliefs, and aspirations and a reflection of the thinking of the society of that time. The history of tile working in Shirāz during the Qājār era had various artists, among which "Mirzā Abd al-Razzāq Kashipaz (1867-1937 or 38)" was one of the most prominent and was one of the few tile painters who have left a lasting and family heritage. The aim of this study is to identify the circumstances, classify the period of evolution of artistic life, and finally the typology of his works so that they can be a source for further comparative studies. Therefore, the key questions are 1- How many periods can Mirzā Abd al-Razzāq's artistic life be divided into? And what were the factors affecting them? 2- In what subjects and themes can the studied works be classified? And finally 3- What data can be historically deduced from other artistic figures of his time in these works? This research used a historical method with the aim of achieving a monograph. In this regard, the necessary data have been collected in the field and with reference to published documents. Although a large number of tiles with the name of Mirzā Abd al-Razzāq are expected to be available, many of these specimens are not available because they are either extinct or in private collections and private houses that could not be photographed. However, in this research, 10 works by Mirzā Abd al-Razzāq are introduced, whose authenticities are not in doubt. What is known about Mirzā Abd al-Razzāq's biography is the result of the first-hand narrations by Rahim Gharbi (tile painter), Massoud and Ahmad Shishegar (tile painter) and Ismail Faghfouri (descendants of Mirzā Abd al-Razzāq) in the writings of Hadi Seif (2013) and Atefeh Seyed Mousavi (2018).
Mirzā Abd al-Razzāq was a "self-made" artist who, due to poverty, "had no master and instructor from the beginning" and "alone and helpless, learned the secret of the technique of tiling and tiling". The findings of this research show that his artistic life can be divided into four periods: 1-Development (1877-1887), 2-Stabilization (1887-1892), 3-Pioneering (1892-1928), and 4-Lack of tile-projects (1928-1937). Most of his surviving works date from the third period, which spans more than three decades. In this research, works from 1897 to 1920 (from Mozaffar od-Dīn Shāh to the Reza Shāh Pahlavi period) were studied. The results of this study show that at least his works could be divided into five categories, including 1-tiles with flower and chicken designs, 2-tiles with epic themes, 3-tiles with religious themes, 4-tiles with icons and figures, and 5-tiles with Vase and flowers. The tiles of Mirzā Abd al-Razzāq also blended excellent examples of traditional themes of the Qajar era with the local taste of the people of Shiraz and created works that were mostly the decoration of houses and public places. For this reason, based on local taste, it has developed a tradition in Shiraz which, although similar in content to its contemporary counterparts, is unique in terms of aesthetics, composition, color, and narrative style, which can be interpreted in the context of local culture and should be studied in the future. Sociologically, the study of the way in which titles are written on the tiles reveals interesting results that show to some extent how the social structure has shaped the relationship between the founder, the architect, and the tile worker. In addition, a review of his works shows that there has been a kind of mutual cooperation between him and a number of prominent and well-known artists; "Ibrahim Ibn Fereydoun" and "Abdul Ali Ashraf Al-Kottab Al-Yazdi" are two important examples. With the decrease in the use of tiles in the buildings of the Reza Shāh Pahlavi era and the decline of orders,, instead of "workshop", he used the word "industries" and words such as "repairs and restorations" and tended to restore the tiles of the city's landmarks; A trend that is later followed by her son (Karim).