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سال پانزدهم شماره 59 (اردیبهشت 1397)

Environment is one of the most useful terms in various issues such as architecture. Since the ultimate goal of architecture is to design the environment, explaining the existential-semantic nature of environment (which has turned out to be discussed less, having become a problem) can play a significant role in making the path of design and criticism purposeful. Hence in its highest level, the present paper scans the nature of environment in Iranian Islamic architecture. Conducted with rational arguments and relying on existence rating of phenomena in Iranian Islamic wisdom, the present article intends to study the meaning of the term “environment” as well as its equivalents in Persian, Arabic, and English, and extract some aspects of its nature. In addition, referring to Iranian-Islamic wisdom (and above that Quranic teachings), the scanning of semantic implications of environment will continue. Afterwards, the paper extracts the meanings of yard in Persian language, Islamic view, and Iranian Islamic architecture. Results show that material confinement is the first level of environment, wherein environment is an object that surrounds an emptiness, keeping other objects in itself. In this level, environment appears as a material position. The second level of environment is awareness of it as an area, distinct from the surrounding areas, whose audience are human minds, and lifestyle, events, and distinct behaviors along with distinguishing natural elements are contributory factors in distinguishing this area from its surrounding ones. Since life and awareness are considered two semantic layers of this level, environment reveals as a behavioral perceptual foundation. The third and highest level of environment is realized through acquaintance with surrounding of a better existence. Realized through symbols’ role, environment implies a spiritual settlement that consoles human soul. Obviously, these levels have been determined credibly and in reality, one can imagine a continuous spectrum of environment levels. In addition, results show that semantic implications of yard are closely related to those of environment. This confirms that the yard is like a synonym of environment, as a man-made space, being a sample or pattern of an Iranian-Islamic environment, in which all three levels have been epitomized.

Our cities are what and where we consume. In essence, the city is in fact nothing more than a space for consumption in which we apparently express ourselves as citizens of a consumer society. Consumption lies at the ideological core of the contemporary city and, as such, consumption spaces lie at the very heart of what it means to be a citizen of the society in which we live. As cities have become evermore outward-looking, as they have sought to establish their role on the world stage, they have simultaneously been compelled to look within themselves. The topographic identity of the city is in a constant battle with the parameters that consumer society has laid down for it.
Spaces for consumption are worthy of particular attention insofar as they traverse notions of public space and the public sphere and as such offer a new kind of public realm, but one over which the public appear to have less control. Furthermore, shopping malls and large commercial centers demand their suitable inter-disciplinary researches, because of their complicated behavioral and formal natures. These places are defining different meanings in relation with their roles in everyday life of postmodern society people. So, semantic studies with emphasis on consumption of space seems necessary.
This article, based on literature review and a logical reasoning method intends to access an initial theoretical framework for analyzing consumption of shopping mall spaces from the window of semantics based on Rapaport’s method for study of meaning in built environment. Result of the paper shows that while these placesand their designers (as elite specialists) do their utmost to create a high-quality space and produce connotative meanings in the minds of the audience before they enter and use the space, but after experiencing space by the audience and consuming it in their everyday lives, what remains is not the original associational meanings, but generally perceptual meanings based on post-modern, collapsing, and collage images. Although these spaces, apparently, differentiate between two categories of consumers, it appears that the bond between the rich and the poor in the shopping centers, and the presence of different classes, will undermine the semantic system produced by capitalist models. The presence of the “poor” and “cultural minorities” in the places of rich people led to the dismantling of unique styles that are provided through the commodities, architecture, and the geographical location of shopping malls.

A semantic look at an architectural space and analyzing its various layers of abstraction and objectivity are among significant areas in architectural studies. Regarding the current intellectual and philosophical methods for the in-depth analysis of the architectural space meaningfulness, a phenomenological approach to location includes a wide range of phenomena. Such an approach has a significant role in the accurate legibility of a place by considering the concepts of location, the centrality of human role, and human experiences. Therefore, a phenomenological method was used in this study to determine the relationship between the reflection of meanings of a historical environment and its identity for the legibility of the Historical Complex of Qazvin Saad-al-Saltaneh. This historical Complex was used as a caravansary in the Safavid Dynasty. Since it was renovated in recent years, it has been considered a dynamic site of architecture in a new form. The study aimed to determine how much different meaning aspects of Saad-al-Saltaneh affected the current importance and specific identity of the case study in comparison with other historical sites in an urban environment.
Accordingly, it is assumed that what brings about the dynamism and livingness of the current identity of Saad-al-Saltaneh is the affinity with social contexts resulting in cultural implications with subjective and perceptual interpretations of the site in addition to the creation of a rich sensory experience. Moreover, the valuable physical status of this historical complex is important in the phenomenological legibility of its identity, the specific aspects of which can be sought in subjective and conceptual implications.
According to the proposed hypothesis, this study aimed to analyze the roles of conceptual, subjective, social, cultural, and historical contexts of the site in relation with personal and perceptual experiences of the physical values of the Historical Complex of Saad-al-Saltaneh. The contexts were to be analyzed in phenomenological aspects to determine the causes of its sustainable identity in the present time.
Therefore, the necessity of meaning interpretation plays a major role as a research principle along with physical and social analyses. Accordingly, this is a qualitative study with a first-person and existential phenomenological approach to spatial foundations. The qualitative research methodology was selected by using a descriptive-analytical technique and employing open, axial, and selective coding methods.
The phenomenological legibility of the specific identity of Saad-al-Saltaneh indicated the important interactive relationship and amalgamation of this historical site with subjective-behavioral, cultural, and social implications of citizens. In fact, general features of historical sites such as visual attractions and architectural values affected the specific identity and public memorability of the case study in relation to meaningful attributes as well as the experiences and perceptions of the audience.

Color as an environmental stimulus is considered as the means for expression of human feelings while reflecting various culture of aspects. Recognizing the characteristics of colors in urban landscape and optimizing their application together with developing responsive urban environments and spaces is major of concern. The concept of color on façade has been and is an inseparable aspect in city planning, because human needs aesthetics. There exist valuable historic urban spaces in Iran where each serves as a unique entity as to formation of an appropriate mosaic. Studies run on the aspect of façade color propose patterns in harmonizing contemporary urban spaces. The objective here proposes a method to analyze façade color and its patterns in urban spaces which include historical structure. The major question of this study is: How the information on environment color concept can be codified by applying modern digital technologies. The method adopted in this study is of analytic descriptive. In this study, the theoretical foundations and history of façade color concept and applied the common methods are analyzed through a combination of digital tools and image processing software. Naghsh-e Jahan Square is selected based on its historical background and its specific importance as a desirable urban space. Attempt is made here to assess the method adopted in our subject area and present the practical implications. The color system applied in this study is CIELab and the method of color strip is applied in the analysis section. The findings indicate that selecting color in harmony with climate in Naghsh-e Jahan Square is an appropriate measure in overcoming to the color problem in urban spaces. These selected colors, in terms of their attribution and characteristics, are in harmony and represented the main colors of the subject space façades. It is observed that the group of complementary color in harmony with the main colors of the background is applied to create qualities like diversity and visual richness, legibility and emphasis on the landmarks and building entrances in an excellent composition.

Based on material evidence and written sources, the contribution and role of the metalwork of Khorasan, especially in the 13th century, which is one of the most active and the most outstanding metalworking schools in the Islamic period, is effective in developing the basic changes in the area of building and decoration of defined metal works and has given it a privileged position. But after the devastating attack of the Mongols, the destruction of Khorasan and the escape of artists to the west, it was the school of Mosul in northern Iraq that reached the sublime stance which earlier belonged to the great Khorasan. Though until the end of the 13th century the dominant style of Iranian metalworking was actually a combination of Iranian and Mosul styles, the reputation of the works of Mosul most of the exquisite objects produced at that time to be attributed to Mosul. However, a large part of the decorative motifs and themes in this area have been the realization of the continuation of the experiences of Iranian Islamic artists with a modern identity that artists took advantage based on their contemporary culture and region.
This article evaluates and studies the decorative motifs and the form of two metal samples (basin and tray) inthe museum of Reza Abassi,which both samples have some common features of Khorasani and Mosuli styles with the aim of determining their true origin. This paper uses a descriptive-analytical research method and desk research method attemmpting to define the origin of the two metallic works of the 13th and 14th centuries belonging to the museum of Reza Abbasi and also a separate analysis of motifs and decorative motifs seeks to find a compelling and rational answer to Iranian origin and the use Khorasani’s style in each of the above works. The results of the findings show that in spite of the use of some decorative elements in these works,they should not be attributed to countried neighboring countries of Iran. . . According to authorss of this article, the works were produced in the western part of Iran.

The present paper has allocated to analysis of the different aspects of popular culture in Zabehi`s paintings according to some social and cultural related contents like utopia, Carnival, and Grotesque. Relying on descriptive-analytical way, the main object of article, is to show how the popular culture emancipate from domination of ruling culture in the works of the artist. The paper aim at highlighting the formal characteristics of works to achieve two levels of explicit and implicit significations, in order to illustrate two kinds of culture: one is related to popular and another is produced by them. At the level of explicit signification, we rely on general characteristics of the artist’s paintings like deleting outlines and deformation of the objects in still lives. Also, applying the expressive colors can make distinguishable types of social characters according to their clothing and their gestures corresponding to their linguistic unusual titles of tableaus. In addition to it, the size of tableaus and artist`s action is the place of breaking the binary oppositions like popular and dominant culture. analysing the Implicit level leads to extract the profound themes with concentration on general characteristics and regarding the subject of artist`s paintings generally. by examining the character`s clothes, we can imagine ceremonies such as carnivals that individuals have equal opportunities in a classless utopia. The fast brushstrokes, with dry and physically colors relying on monstrous forces and color-sensing, display the features that resist to the forces of representative/objective rules of artistic works. This resistance makes painting able to have a potential energy that motivates, distorts and deformes the stable and immutable dimension of figures and forms of still lives. This aspect parallelly along with the implied fear of deformed and dried-up still lives, shows the grotesque space. All of the above mentioned features, based on the style of expressionism, have depicted paintings out of the representational/objective domination and direct emphasis on the obvious attributes of popular classes. These measures present the opportunities for realizing the ignored energies of popular culture. as a result these works by formal description and interpretive analysis of two levels of signification display two aspects of popular culture, first which is produced by concentration on their creative works, practices, rituals and ceremonies. The second, stems from their behaviors, habits and lifestyles. Thus, in contrast to the imitative and objective art, these works are aesthetic/sunjective ones because of their superiority over the dominant forms of artistic experiences.