In cooperation with
the Silkroad Foundation, the San Francisco Bay Area Rug Society, the Department
of Near East Studies at UC Berkeley, Payvand Cultural School (www.payvand.org), the Iranian Federated Women’s
Club, Global Exchange, the Iranian-American Chamber of Commerce, and the
Mechanics’ Institute Library
Humanities West presents
Isfahan: Imperial
Persia’s Glittering Jewel
May 14 and 15, 2004
At Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Avenue (at McAllister),
SF
Single Day Tickets: $20 Student; $30
balcony; $35 Main Floor/Grand Tier
Tickets to both Days: $40 Student; $55
balcony; $65 Main Floor/Grand Tier
Contact City Box Office at (415)
392-4400 or visit www.cityboxoffice.com
For further info, or to receive a
promotional brochure, contact Humanities West at (415) 391-9700 or www.humanitieswest.org
Isfahan embodies the greatness of imperial Persia. In the early
16th century, the Safavid dynasty made Persia the homeland of the
Shiite vision of Islam. In 1598 the Safavid Shah Abbas the Great moved his
capital to Isfahan in the center of the country, and rebuilt the city with broad
avenues, elaborate gardens, majestic bridges, a magnificent royal palace, and
stunning mosques. Under this enlightened monarch, music, literature, and
miniature painting flourished, and Isfahan became world-famous for the beauty of
its carpets and textiles. His successors continued to build magnificent palaces,
mosques, and schools. They established a flourishing tradition of support for
the decorative arts, notably calligraphy and miniature painting. Isfahan's era
of glory lasted into the nineteenth century.
Friday, May
14
Isfahan is Half the World
8:00 PM (Lecture) Safavid Iran:
Friend or Foe?
The newly established Safavid Shiite
regime suffered birth pangs comparable to the adjustments of contemporary Europe
to the culture of the Renaissance. The Safavids and European monarchs
collaborated against the Ottoman empire which had already conquered large parts
of Europe and threatened to expand eastward into Iran as well. Prize-winning
historian Abbas Milani (Research
Fellow, Hoover Institution, and Professor of Political Science, Stanford
University) paints in deft, colorful strokes an image of Iranian society in this golden age and
the role it played in international politics, focusing on the capital city of Isfahan as the perfect
metaphor for the aspirations of Safavid royalty, particularly Shah
Abbas.
9:00 PM
(performance) Classical and folk dances performed by the Neynava dance troupe, known for
the authenticity and dynamism of its presentations, led by Sheida
Pegahi.
Saturday, May 15,
2004
Jewel of the Safavids
10:00 AM (lecture) “The City of Isfahan and its Glorious
Architecture”
“Isfahan nesf-e jahan” said the
Safavids; “Isfahan is half the world,” and its architecture comes close to
justifying this famous couplet. In moving the capital of Persia to Isfahan, Shah
Abbas set out to create a glorious showplace of art, culture, and religion, to
which travelers, ambassadors, and merchants from Europe and Asia would eagerly
travel. Its beauty still remains as a center of exquisite art and architecture
for the world to admire. Dr. Johanna Movassat (Lecturer in Art and
Art History, San Jose State University), a popular lecturer on Asian
architecture, is married to an Iranian and considers Isfahan her “second home.”
Her lecture will include consideration of the key role of Shah Abbas in the
planning of his imperial city.
11:00 AM
(lecture) “Miniature Paintings of
the Safavid Period”
Miniature painters fostered by the
Safavid court produced dazzling works of art that often broke new ground in
their restricted genre. Isfahan’s artists, often using a single hair of the
paintbrush, produced works of unsurpassed delicacy and detail, though simple in
their themes and content: a princess bathing in a secluded stream; a king
holding court. Professor Catherine Glynn Benkaim (University of
California at Los Angeles} will analyze the aesthetics of Persian miniatures and
explain their narrative function.
12 noon
Break for Lunch
1:30 PM (performance) “Classical Iranian Music from the
Isfahan-Shiraz region” by Mr. Mahmoud Zoufonoun and ensemble. Mr.
Zoufonoun is probably the leading expert on classical Iranian music in the
United States. His ensemble will play selected classical pieces and offer a
demonstration of the authentic instruments on which they perform. Mr.
Zoufonoun’s pupil, Professor Manuchehr
Ghiassi of Santa Clara University, will discuss the function and structure
of the music.
2:00 PM (lecture) “The Imagined Embrace: Christians and Jews
Under the Safavids” The Safavid Dynasty proclaimed Twelver Shiite Islam as
the state religion, and its rulers embarked on a rigorous campaign to convert
muslims and non-muslims of Iran to Shiism. What was the status of religious
minorities in Safavid Iran? How were Christians, Jews, Sunnis and Sufis treated?
Did the state have an interest in favoring one against another? Professor Jaleh Pirnazar, (Near Eastern Studies
Department, UC Berkeley) will address these questions through an examination of
contemporary texts.
3:00 PM
(lecture) “Carpets, Textiles and
Other Applied Arts of the Safavids” Persian
carpets are prized for their exquisite designs and colors, and carpets from
Isfahan above all. But the Safavids excelled in metalwork, ceramics, and
other areas of the applied arts as well. No
one is better qualified to discuss the Safavid accomplishments in these fields
than renowned art historian Walter B.
Denny (University of Massachussets at Amherst), a dynamic lecturer and a
consultant to numerous museums and private
collectors.
4:00 PM - Panel discussion with all
participants. Audience questions to be addressed.
