Changing Times and the Time for Change: The Influence and Contribution of Mirzā ʿAli-Qoli Khoʾi to Modern and Contemporary Iranian Art

Lithographic illustrations in Persian books of the Qajar period constitute the conduit for transition in book illustration from the older manuscripts to modern and contemporary Iranian art. Illustrations in lithographed books made available once exclusive, rare, and tremendously expensive manuscript illustrations to many new readers, thus spreading its aesthetics and forms to a much wider audience and by extension to the future generations. This historic transition is particularly evident in the work of Mirzā ʿAli-Qoli Khoʾi, a master artist who was thoroughly familiar with traditional illustrations in literary works, such as Ferdousi’s Shāhnāme and Neẓāmi’s Khamse. Khoʾi’s drawings, layouts, and designs closely resembled older established formats of book illustrations. Even though the official oil painting of the Qajar royal court was more realistic, the spread of lithographic illustrations had a great impact on other visual arts. For instance, similar compositions can be found in the popular arts of “Coffehouse painting” and painting behind glass.
Mirzā ʿAli-Qoli Khoʾi is one of the first Iranian artists who mastered the techniques of lithographic printing. Khoʾi’s skills in drawing and his knowledge of the traditional illustrations helped him adopt techniques most suitable for lithography. For instance, he used pardaz, an elaborate technique of placing dots in closely tight space to create an illusion of depth to create light and shadow. Khoʾi’s tremendous output early on in the process of the transition to printed books helped pave the way for a sustained artistic and aesthetic continuity in Iranian art. Many modern and contemporary Iranian artists such as Ardeshir Mohases, Farshi Methgali, etc have been influenced by Khoʾi’s work.
My contribution examines this important transition from manuscript illustration to lithographed books of the Qajar period in light of older illustrated works, works of Khoʾi’s contemporaries and his influence on later artistic trends.