A Comparative Study of Farangi-Sazi in the Thematic Figural Works of Mohammad Zaman and Ali-Qoli Beg Jabbadar

Abstract

With the transfer of the capital from Qazvin to Isfahan by Shah Abbas I, Europeans entered Iran, particularly Isfahan, and as a result, artists came under the influence of European painting. Iranian painting, which was imaginative and lacked perspective as well as chiaroscuro, no longer satisfied the tastes of Safavid artists and kings; this was because the kings wanted their portraits to be realistic and close to nature, like European works. Therefore, during the reign of Shah Abbas II, two artists named Mohammad Zaman and Ali-Qoli Beg Jabbadar depicted their paintings in the European manner while preserving Iranian traditions. Consequently, a style known as Farangi-Sazi emerged in Iran. Mohammad Zaman and Ali-Qoli Beg Jabbadar remained active until the end of the eleventh century AH. The present study examines the factors influencing the formation of the Farangi-Sazi method in the paintings of these two artists, their stylistic characteristics, and the similarities and differences in the figural works of Mohammad Zaman and Ali-Qoli Beg Jabbadar. In view of this objective, the following two questions are raised: a) What are the factors influencing the formation of the Farangi-Sazi method in the works of these two artists, Mohammad Zaman and Ali-Qoli Beg Jabbadar? b) What are the similarities and differences in the figural works of Mohammad Zaman and Ali-Qoli Beg Jabbadar? These questions are answered through a descriptive-analytical method and a comparative study, while the required data were collected through library research and observation of the works. The results of this study show that factors such as the arrival of Europeans in Iran, relations between India and Iran, the Armenians living in Julfa, and the interest of Safavid kings, particularly Shah Abbas II, in painting caused the Isfahan School to be influenced by European and Indian paintings. However, the works of artists such as Mohammad Zaman and Ali-Qoli Jabbadar preserved their Iranian identity and created a combination of Eastern and Western art in the eleventh century AH; as a result, they developed a distinctive hybrid style of their own.