What is Minakari art, and how is it used in graphics?

When you walk into the handicraft stores of Middle East countries like Iran and Turkey, you must have come across blue objects that have given a special effect to your surroundings. These eye-catching ornaments are the Minakari works. You should know that Minakari's art is decorating and painting enameling metal objects, usually copper.

The artist paints a variety of Minakari designs on the desired dishes using unique colors that are glazed. After these artists draw and paint the desired design in the chosen container, they must place the container in a furnace.

At a specific temperature, which is usually very high, these dishes are baked, and the color and pattern drawn by the artist will not disappear. You should know that not only copper dishes are used for Minakari; other dishes such as silver, bronze and glass are also chosen for Minakari.

Today, artists have come out of the monotony and do enameling on exciting objects such as glass, pottery and gold. Because people and art lovers like Minakari on these dishes very much, most Minakari artists use these objects along with copper.

The sky is blue in the eyes of humans. On the other hand, because the background of most of the Minakari dishes is blue, they chose this name, " Minakari, "for it. persian blue color is the main color in this art. But today, artists use various colors such as: "red, green, yellow, purple, turquoise, brown, black and gold" to paint the background of enamelware.

What dishes are made using Minakari art?

You should know that a part of the art of Minakari is related to the creation of decorative works of art, and a part of it is related to containers that, while being decorative, can be used for various practical purposes. The tools that are made using the art of enameling are as follows:

• Plates, bowls and mugs can be designed by Minakari art, which is both beautiful and can be used as kitchen utensils.

Among the decorative aspects of enamel art, we can mention the decoration of photo frames and different panels, which, if you install them on the wall of the house, can catch the eye of any viewer.

• The art of Minakari is used in making jewelry such as earrings, enamel jewelry brooches and enamel rings. The combination of Minakari art and gold gives a special effect to the final created work.

The beauty of Minakari

Minakari is one of the most magnificent handicrafts in Iran. The art of painting and designing the surface of metals such as gold, silver, and copper by glazing colors and fire in a furnace (sometimes done on glass or ceramics.) According to orientalist Arthur Pope. Minakari dates back to 1500 BC. Its practice on metal appeared in 400-600 BC.

Minakari is usually done on various vessels such as vases and plates, photo frames, shrine doors and windows, ornaments, small decorative objects and combinations with inlays, miniatures, ornaments and other types of art. The colors used in enameling are taken from plants, minerals and iron ore. Today, chemical dyes are often used. Artisans use gold, copper and tin in combination with various chemicals to make red, green and yellow colors.

Mina, which means heaven in Farsi, is a glass coating fixed by heat on various metals. Minakari handicrafts are available in different colors such as azure blue, reddish-purple, green, yellow, turquoise, yellow, gold and black, but Isfahan enamel is usually known with blue azure and turquoise colors.

Short History of Minakari

From the beginning of the emergence of enameling art, also called the art of fire and earth, we can refer to the time of tile work; Since the same colors are used in the manufacture of enamel, they are also used in the manufacture of tiles.

As for the history of Minakari art in Iran, it dates back to the Parthian and Sasanian periods, but its use from the beginning of Islam to before the rule of the Mongol Ilkhans is not clear to us.

This art may not be Iranian. Still, since it has evolved in Iran, especially in its artistic capital, the beautiful city of Zandroud, it has become completely Iranian, and today it is famous in the eyes of the world. The leader of Sepahan artists.

Different kind of Minakari designs

slimy

Salimi is a type of engraving that consists of curved lines and ivy that embody the symbolic shape of flower and plant ivy and are drawn in inscriptions and some other works of painting.

Today, there are more than fifty types of slime shapes; For example, a slime is designed based on the crawling of a snake and introduced under the name Slime Mari. Of course, the slime branch is a decorative pattern that is different from the slime circulation, and the slime itself does not have a spiral, and if there are flowers and leaves on it, the slime cannot be alone.

Khataei

Khataei is a diverse art design that is created from the combination of buds, flowers and leaves out of their natural shape and based on the style of decorative arts and in the form of Iranian symbols.

The basis of a fault pattern is a series of rhythmic curved lines, each of which is called a stanza, all of which are artistically balanced. The set of these clauses covers the entire design like a skeleton. In order to create harmony in a khatai design, designers usually choose two to six types of flowers, leaves and khatai buds and mix them according to their own taste, and from the combination of khatai and slimi, a design known as khatai-slimi is obtained.

flower and bird

The role of flowers and birds in Iranian traditional arts has always been associated with religious and mystical effects, and this role is mostly used on the covers of the Qur'an, Shahnameh, Divan Hafez, Saadi book, Nizami, etc. It is also evident in the margins of religious lines and poems of poets. The role of birds, especially chickens, has long existed in our culture and art as a symbol of purity and freedom.

Prayers, verses and Persian and poems

Any line or text can be written by Minakari on dishes. Of course, this method is mainly used on enamel vessels such as enamel plaques, plates or in the decoration of sacred places. The Minakari artist must canvas the glazed enamel plate with the desired color and make it impenetrable or cover it. The pen used for writing in this work is a wooden or metal pen, preferably a wooden pen.

In this type of design, the master calligrapher must have sufficient skills because correcting or correcting mistakes in writing causes problems that reduce the quality of Mina's art.

I hope you enjoyed the Minakari and its designs on the desired dishes using unique colors that are glazed. After these artists draw and paint the desired design in the chosen container, they must place the container in a furnace.n