NOW AND TEN

Christie’s is proud to ofer in the present sale an
exceptional masterpiece by the Iranian artist Mansour
Qandriz. Born in 1935, Qandriz stands at the forefront
of Modern Iranian art and is celebrated as one of the
most important and highly sought after artists of his
time. As the artist died prematurely in a car accident
in 1965, he only made a small number of paintings
during his lifetime and most of the works from his
Saqqakhaneh period are safely kept in private hands
and very rarely appear at auction.
Following an academic training in art, Qandriz creates
his signature style fusing various inspirations from
Chinese paintings to French Impressionism and Islamic
arts. In the early 1960s, he joined a group of infuential
Iranian artists who moved away from pure Modernism
that prevailed in the previous decade in an attempt
to combine their traditional heritage with Modernity.
The neo-traditionalist approach of these artists and
intellectuals refected their quest for a national artistic
identity, within the realm of a disrupted social and
political environment. When in 1962, the art critic and
journalist Karim Emami evoked the term Saqqakhaneh
as a reference to the votive fountains found in Tehran’s
urban environment, he alluded to the works of artists
such as Parviz Tanavoli, known as the father and
pioneer of the movement, Charles Hossein Zenderoudi,
Faramarz Pilaram and Mansour Qandriz. These artists,
each in their own way and with their distinctive styles,
incorporated Islamic and spiritual motifs as well as
references to the Persian folk culture within their
abstract compositions. Inspired by the typically Persian
motifs and patterns, the tribal art of the Iranian villages
that they discovered on rugs and textiles and in the art
of metalwork, these artists created a style that until
today defnes the essence of Iranian Modern art.
Mansour Qandriz stood as one of the leading fgures
of the Saqqakhaneh School. Through painting, Qandriz
delicately and beautifully fused tradition and modernity
and fought for the rise and revival of a common
pictorial heritage and a strong Persian identity through
the arts. Inspired by the geometric patterns that
were traditionally used in the Persian handicrafts,
he recreated them on the surface of his canvases,
combined them in shapes that recalled human bodies
and incorporated symbols such as birds, swords, the
sun and fsh in an attempt to bring to life the heritage
that was somewhat forgotten and rejected in his
contemporary society.
The present work is an enchanting example from his
highly sought after Saqqakhaneh paintings. One sees
shapes that recall the ornamental keys and locks that
were famously attached to the votive fountains as a
gesture for prayer. The subtle colours impair a soothing
efect to the overall composition, while the intricate
details allude to the Islamic architecture and traditional
arts that profoundly inspired Qandriz through his life
and art. Somehow depicting a semi-human fgure,
Qandriz beautifully recreates the personifcation of
his Persian heritage. As one of his most captivating
compositions, the present work is undeniably one of
the artist’s most important masterpieces.
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