Mani Mehrzad

Living in the City of Kerman, Iran, for four years to study restoration of the historical structures left a lifetime expression on me. The supreme architecture of the city and the astonishing nature around it, which I witnessed during my trips to Tehran, familiarized me with a unique phenomenon that looked like a scenic canvas in my eyes. The Desert, the sky full of stars, being far from my home, and feeling distressed at sunset took roots deep down in my heart as much as the art of the Far East and Japanese poetry did years before. All those experiences inspired me to start my first series of paintings. Choosing the best materials was a delightful challenge. I chose auto body paint, building paint, gasoline, paint thinner and paper to experiment freely and discover my capabilities. Some of those paintings were exhibited at the University of Art and Architecture in the city of Yazd in 2003 and some other at Seyhoon Art Gallery in Tehran in 2004. Besides, studying restoration of the historical structures took me to a novel path to comprehend the eminence of the Iranian art and different schools of philosophy. And, it provided me with a vast amount of information for visual sources. The result was my strong desire to create works based on the traditional Iranian arts yet with a modern style. This disquisition is evident both in my paintings and in the children’s book illustrations that I rendered during those years. In 2004, I moved back to Tehran to study Graphic Design at Tarbiat Modares University. For my thesis, I decided to focus on illustrating heroic stories for children’s books. To actualize my studies, I illustrated six legendary tales for children, which were published between 2009 and 2012. My interest in merging Traditional Iranian miniature painting and modern art, and, studying the schools of art such as Haraat, Tabriz and Shiraz as well as referring to the Lithography of the nineteenth century led me to a new series of paintings. Now, painting is my core concentration. My practices in book illustration, studying graphic design and restoration of the historical structures, literature, and living in two different cities that are in stark contrast in many ways have become my muse. My new paintings are a manifestation of the contradictions that I live in. Unlike my previous canvases that evince tranquility, my recent works indicate agitation verses peace, silence verses chaos, tension verses repose, and light verses darkness. My intention is to persuade ultimate hope and serenity that is the essence of life. For me, hope is a miracle to persuade liberation, betterment and peace.

2015. P.H.D Student. The Philosophy of Art. Sanandaj University,Sanandaj, Iran. 2006. M.A.Graphic Design, TarbiatModares University, Tehran, Iran. Thesis: Children’s Book IllustrationFor Epic Stories (Based on Timurid and Safavid Miniature Paintings). 2004. B.A. Restoration and Rehabilitation of Historic Structures,Baahonar University, Kerman, Iran. Thesis: The Restoration of Malek Mosque in The City of Kerman.