Lot 82: FARAMARZ PILARAM (IRANIAN, 1937-1982) Untitled signed and twice dated ‘Pila

FARAMARZ PILARAM (IRANIAN, 1937-1982) Untitled signed and twice dated ‘Pilaram 70 70’ (lower left); signed ‘Faramarz Pilaram’ (on the reverse) oil, resin, ink and metallic paint on canvas 23 5/8 x 35 1/2 in. (60 x 90cm.) Painted in 1970

PROVENANCE: A gift from the artist to the present owner in the 1970s. Acclaimed as one of Iran’s Modern masters and pioneer of the Saqqakhaneh movement, Faramarz Pilaram is unmatched in his artistic expression and sophisticated reconceptualisation of Persian calligraphy. Starting in the 1960s and continuing through the Iranian Revolution, Pilaram’s experimentation with calligraphy is captured in a body of work spanning over two decades. His canvases feature strong but traditional colours and overlapping, repetitive and rotating letters, which render the Persian script indecipherable as a written or spoken language; instead, his enigmatic new script creates an Aesthetic language unique to each of the artist’s works. Pilaram sought to focus on art that would refect on the rich cultural heritage of his beloved Iran within a modern context. The Saqqakhaneh School is an association of Iranian artists who drew directly from the traditional art forms of Iran as the raw material for their artworks. In the view of the members of the school, elements from their cultural roots had to be linked to modern styles and fused to create a distinctly national artistic expression. Pilaram’s practice marries the traditional techniques and iconography of Islamic, pre- Islamic, and folk art with the Western techniques that were widely prevalent in pre-revolutionary Iran. In the present composition, the script is composed of gilded golden and black rhythmic waves that add to the dynamic movement created by the red and purple abstract passaged of colour that lie directly underneath. Through this layering of diferent opacities and juxtapositions, there is a sense of fow and movement conceived by the layering of calligraphic components that creates a mystical aura. Turning to Nasta’liq calligraphy, one of the traditional and dominant styles of Persian calligraphy, his works build on the traditional model of Siah Mashgh or practice sheets for calligraphy upon which Persian script was repeated over and over until it was transcribed perfectly. Thus, this playful use of traditional techniques with broad and expressive brushstrokes of colour, evocative of calligraphical practices in themselves, shows Pilaram’s avant-gardist practice and thinking.