Lot 52: Faramarz Pilaram (Iranian, 1937-1982)

Faramarz Pilaram (Iranian, 1937-1982)
Untitled
monogramed in Farsi (lower right); signed on the reverse''FARAMARZ PILARAM 1962'and dated in Farsi
colour and ink on paper laid on canvas
87¾ x 38¾in. (200 x 98.5cm.)
Painted in 1962

Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, Saqqakhaneh, 1977 (illustrated in colour in the catalogue)

PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTION, TEHRAN

The present lot is a very rare large early work by Faramaz Pilaram, one of the most important Saqqa-khaneh artists, alongside Charles Hossein Zenderoudi and Parviz Tanavoli. It was one of the highlights of the group retrospective exhibition Saqqakhaneh, held at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art in 1977.

The materials used by Pilaram in this painting were similar to those of the Zenderoudi painting of the previous lot, and the many related motifs together comprise a kind of lexicon of Saqqa-khaneh vocabulary. These symbols include the severed hand of Hazrat Abbas or the Hand of Fatima, and outlines recalling suns, haloes and the 'alams- the iron or bronze ceremonial standards carried during the Shi'ite festival of Ashura, combining them to produce startling modernist effects. Whilst related, the two works are quite different- Pilaram's work is reminiscent of Art Deco and of architectural expressionism, with flat colours and metallic paint which describe what appear to be metal objects, with more focus on outline and less of the on surface than in Zenderoudi's painting. However, in both the high degree of abstraction and novel deployment of each of these elements reveals a modern sensibility and a clear break from the traditions of Islamic art.