Persian miniature art on display in Russia
Iran’s Center for Visual Arts opened a week-long program September 26 in St. Petersburg and Moscow, bringing master miniaturist Hossein Esmati to Russia for a series of workshops, exhibitions and talks on the country’s centuries-old tradition of manuscript painting.
The project, dubbed ‘Iranian Miniature Week’, is organized jointly by Tehran’s Ibn Sina Foundation, National Library of Russia in St. Petersburg, the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences and Moscow’s Tikhon's Orthodox University of the Humanities in Moscow, Mehr New Agency reported.
The events run from September 26 to 29 in St. Petersburg and continue in the Russian capital from October 1 to 3.
At the heart of the program is Hossein Esmati, a leading contemporary painter in the delicate craft of miniature art. His original works are being displayed alongside interactive masterclasses designed to give Russian audiences an insight into the “secrets and subtleties” of a discipline rooted in Persian manuscripts and courtly traditions.
Beyond the studio sessions, the program features scholarly lectures on the history and cultural standing of Iranian miniature, together with screenings of art documentaries.
Organizers say the aim is to provide both an educational platform and an encounter with what one academic called “a living heritage.”
The National Library of Russia, one of Europe’s largest, is hosting three days of exhibitions and classes on September 26, 28 and 29.
The Moscow leg will follow at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Moscow’s Tikhon's Orthodox University of the Humanities from October 1 to 3.