Works of art, are a reflection of the artist’s personal, social, and historical circumstances; conditions that the artist, influenced by, creates the work through signs, symbols, and visual forms.
According to Artmag.ir, imagination is an important part of artistic creation; but the artist reflects his or her lifeworld in the work, considering individual and collective archetypes.
Iran Darroudi, a contemporary female artist, also used her feminine sensibilities and aesthetic taste to build a visual lifeworld from personal experiences.
She lived in a time when specific social and political conditions prevailed in Iran and the world. Considering her sensitivity to surrounding events and the experiences she gained through international travels and connections, it can be concluded that her works reconstruct part of the collective and social identity of the time in the broad scope of her connections.
Early Works
Her early works were formed in the context of contemporary world art and the height of human crises, the era after World War II and the Cold War, and based on the socio-political characteristics of that period.
This reflection establishes a more realistic connection with an audience that cares about the human and collective turmoil of the contemporary world. In terms of the sensory perception of the era he lived in this tense society, Dorudi’s works are closer to the minds of audiences influenced by the concepts of the contemporary world.
Her early works are a reflection of the same lived world; today’s audience can see part of the semantic messages of the contemporary era in them. This semantic bond between the audience and the artist arises from the artist’s true presence in his own time and its reflection.
The formalist and expressionist approach of this period was formed based on her inner emotions and personal experiences, and it is obvious that the aesthetics of these works connect more with an audience that interacts with the complexities and ambiguities of the contemporary world.
Turn in Later Works
In the later period, the surrealist attitude arising from personal feelings becomes more prominent in Iran Darroudi’s works; with colorful and formal spatializations and surreal lighting made of glass and crystal, flower and pearl decorations and desert crystal walls. This approach is more characterized by symbolic expression and a symbolic look. After her experiences in Western art, she returned to feminine and oriental symbols and icons.
Thus, the later works are no longer a direct reflection of modernity’s ideas and the emotions of expressionist compositions; rather, they can be read more in a framework close to symbolism, full of mystical, spiritual and inner symbols. .However, a feeling of sadness, a look at death and a lost love can also be observed in the works of this period.
Sorrow with feminine characteristics, which introduces us to the knowledge that is usually in a sensitive, imaginative, and poetic woman. For this reason, it cannot be believed that her works have a complete understanding of the ideal and mystical world and are detached from the material world. That man still has her feet on the ground, suffering from loss, the sorrow of love, and the thought of death.
The presence of light, derived from Eastern mysticism
The presence of “light” in Iranian painting and art is different from the representation of light in Western art; its metaphysical and non-physical nature has esoteric, mystical, and symbolic meanings. From the Mazdaist thought that considers Ahura Mazda as the embodiment of light and goodness, to the Islamic era, light has been a characteristic of Iranian art.
From this perspective, Iran Darroudi’s attention to light and its application in his works can be a reflection of the experience of inner stability and personal spirituality at certain periods of her life; a spirituality that is displayed with familiar symbols such as light, flowers, and pearls.
However, as with any artist, this visual reflection is not necessarily a complete mirror of his soul; Sometimes, depending on the living conditions, the works become more expressionistic and conceptual, but they never return to the initial expressionist poetics.
For Iran Darroudi, the undulating space of light and flowers was closer and more in tune with her oriental sense; hence, a personal, poetic, and feminine surrealism was formed that is largely distant from the visual expression of the past.
For Iran Darroudi, the undulating space of light and flowers was closer and more in line with her oriental sensibility; hence, a personal, poetic, and feminine surrealism emerged that is largely distant from the visual expression of the past.
Akram Hadi – IRNA News Agency
