فهرست مطالب safieh hatami

 The mausoleum of twelve imams of Yazd is a thousand-year-old building with a valuable inscription in decorative Kufic script under the dome, which is very important in terms of visual richness and worthy of study. Gestalt is one of the theories of the visual perception process in psychology, and the principles of this theory can be useful in the recognition of works of art. The most important principles of Gestalt are the principle of similarity, symmetry, proximity, layering, integration, continuity, relationships between form and context, superimposition and common destiny. The inscription should be placed. In this way, the amount of use of these principles in its design will be determined and the quality of the resulting performance will be revealed.This research seeks to answer the question that to what extent and how the principles of similarity, contiguity, symmetry, completion and overlap were used in the design of the inscription of the tomb of the twelve Imams of Yazd, and what is the degree of significance resulting from the use of each of these principles?This research was carried out in a descriptive-analytical way and the data were collected through library studies and field surveys.The results showed that the principles of similarity and overlap are used to a large extent, the principle of proximity and completion to a large extent, and the principle of symmetry to a moderate extent are used in this inscription. The result of the application of these principles is the realization of propaganda to a large extent, and as a result, the better organization of the components, the easier reception of the work and the active communication of the audience with the inscription.Key words: Tomb of twelve Imams of Yazd, inscription, visual perception, Gestalt theory, pregnancy.

The Davazdah Imam Mausoleum of Yazd, built-in 429 A.H., is one of the rare historical buildings in the Islamic world, which is very famous among Islamic architecture researchers worldwide. The Grivar inscription of this building shows the Ayatul Kursi verse in Moashaq Moshajar script in azure color on a plaster bed. Gestalt theory of visual perception is one of the influential theories of the 20th century in visual arts, which focuses the process of visual perception on a unified vision and the integrity of the work of art, and proposes 10 principles of visual perception. Due to the wideness of the Gestalt concept, no direct translation has been made in any language. This word means "form" and "shape" in German. In English, it is called "organized whole", "supposition", or "formation". In the Persian language, it can be equated to concepts such as "shape", "form", "structure", and "wholeness". It should be added immediately that none of these words alone fully express the meaning proposed by Gestalt. By watching a collection to perceive and feel it, the human mind unconsciously analyzes and categorizes its components and simultaneously thinks about form and content. It is the basis of the principles of Gestalt visual perception, which is the scientific basis of the present research for the visual analysis of the mentioned inscription. Several examples of works of art can be seen where artists have unconsciously used the principles of Gestalt perceptual organization in their creation without being aware of these rules. The inscription of the Twelve Imams of Yazd is also one of these works because its visual beauty and richness result from the use of good Gestalts by its designer (s), even when these rules were not discovered. Perhaps, in the analysis of how to perceive the visual space of an inscription and the criteria of its formation, the most appropriate approach is the Gestalt theory, which was used for evaluation in this research, and by conducting studies on it, the extent of utilization of these principles can be achieved. The current research was conducted through library and field studies, and the method used was descriptive and analytical. To collect the images of the inscription under the dome of the Davazdah Imam Mausoleum of Yazd, first, the entire inscription was photographed, despite being at a high height compared to the ground and its particular problems. Then, according to the photos, the software recreated this inscription from the beginning to the end, which is one of the long inscriptions. Some parts of the inscription were worn and damaged, which made it difficult to perform accurately. Subsequently, the visual analysis of the recreated design based on Gestalt principles began, and due to the diversity of these principles and the visual complexity of the inscription components, only some of these principles were focused on. This research tries to adapt three essential principles from the 10 principles of Gestalt psychology of sensation and perception in the mentioned inscription and seeks to answer these questions: - To what extent and how have the designers used the principles of figure-ground, continuity, and common fate to design the magnificent inscription of the Twelve Imams of Yazd? - What is the Pragnanz degree of applying each of these principles in the design of the examined inscription? The results of this research showed that the charm and beauty of the Grivar inscription of the Davazdah Imam Mausoleum of Yazd is the result of the use of artistic taste and the proper application of different Gestalts in the whole and its parts; however, this was done unintentionally and without knowing the scientific and psychological foundations of this theory. Considering this inscription's breadth and complexity, it was impossible to examine all the principles and rules of Gestalt in this study. Undoubtedly, the intensity of other possible Gestalts affected the quality of the overall perception received from scrutinizing the inscription. However, the result obtained from this research showed that the visual richness in the inscription results from applying the Gestalt of figure-ground, continuity, and common fate to a large degree, which remarkably created its substantial and satisfactory Pragnanz.

Decoration has a concept and meaning beyond adornment and physical appearance, and to understand it, one must identify religious concepts and visual codes. In all works of Islamic art and architecture, decorations have always played an essential role in establishing a sense of unity and sodality, and different visual measures have been used to induce this sense. The Grivar inscription of the Davazdah Imam Mausoleum of Yazd is a thousand-year-old unique inscription with a monotheistic theme placed on an octagonal platform, which can be used as the basis for its analysis. The present article has tried to uncover the visual and formal measures implemented in this inscription using visual analysis, and it seeks to answer the following questions: "Which visual and representational measures has the designer used in the design of the Grivar inscription of the Davazdah Imam Mausoleum of Yazd? How and to what extent has it been used to instill a sense of unity?" In this qualitative research, which was conducted using descriptive-analytical method, and the data was collected through library studies and field surveys. While reflecting on this building, the mentioned inscription, which has been damaged over time, was recreated. Since the overall unity lies in the components, while analyzing the overall structure, parts of this long inscription were randomly selected for analysis. The results of data analysis showed that following the identical form, especially in the geometric and writing system, using small components in each system, following the common linear structure, the space of the same importance on the inscription, etc. are among the most significant visual measures used with different quantities and qualities in the inscription's design, which, as a whole, plays a role in inducing more monotheistic themes by creating a desirable visual unity.

The construction date of the ‘Twelve ImamsMausoleum’ in Yazd goes back to the end of the Buyidsand Daylamites periods. The architectural ornaments of this building include murals, plasterworks, faience mosaics, and brickworks; also, an inscription with decorative Kufic script has decorated its parts. The research conducted on this building is limited to the architecture and restoration of its external walls, while the dome has valuable ornaments, including the inscription of ‘Ayatul Kursi’ in its Grivar. This inscriptionis implemented using the technique of ‘painting on plaster’. This historical monument has been seriously damaged due to the age of the building and the destructive environmental effects on it. These damages are either erosion destroying the appearance of the building or the structural destruction destroying the foundation of the building; therefore, knowing the damage so as to prevent further destruction and reconstruction is of particular importance to preserving this thousand-year-old monument.

This research tries to study the damages inflicted on this inscription with the help of reconstruction and damage photography. It, also, tries to to know the structure and motifs used in it in comparison with similar inscriptions. The questions raised in this research were: 1- What were the damages caused to the Grivar inscription in the Twelve Imams Mausoleum? 2- What was the general structure and decorations used for this ornament? This research was descriptive-analytical, and data collection was based on library studies and field surveys. Its approach in the image processing section of the inscription to determine the amount of damage was quantitative, and in the structural analysis it was qualitative. The primary research sources were provided using field photography; the damage mapping of the sides of the inscription was reconstructed based on photographs and images; image processing was provided using a computer program and a color analysis method. The images processed based on color; the numerical results were separated and analyzed based on tables, and the possibility of reproducing the inscription provided the conditions for its structural investigation concerning the analysis of external components and visual features.

The mentioned inscription is in Kufic (Moashaq Moshajar) script, written in dark azure color on a plaster base. This inscription began with "Bismillah" from the third side of the top of the entrance door and ended with the phrase ‘Al-Ali al-Azeem’ at the end of the eighth side. Over time, damages were imposed on this inscription, leading to the destruction of many parts. Among these damages were humidity, mud,and water flow from the upper parts on the surface of the inscription, the effect of suspended particles in the air, pollution, and dust, the change in the writing's color, the loosening of the paint layer, and its separation from the plaster bed due to the passage of time, penetration termites and the porosity caused by their activity in the lower layers, the cracks caused by earthquakes or other shocks and the forces entering the building, and the traces of droppings of birds or other creatures on the surface of the inscription. Measuring the accurate amount of damage on each side was done in the form of three separate images for each side: 1- The reproduced image of each side of the inscription was in black and white without destruction (the processing of this image provides the amount of positive (text) and negative (background) space to determine the amount of damage in other destructions). 2- The recreated image of each side showed infrastructure destruction in red and paint loss in blue 3- A black-and-white image of each side of the inscription was used to estimate surface pollution. Based on this damage imaging method, by comparing the white and black colors on each side and the percentage of white and black in the ‘initial recreated design’, it was noted whether the destruction damaged the writing itself or the background of the inscription. Accordingly, the fifth side had the most serious destruction of the background with 8%, and the the most serious destruction of the text with 7%. The results of the processing of the blue color, which represents the ‘paint loss’ showed that the first side had the highest amount of paint loss (7% loss), which caused the color of the design and the background to be the same. The lowest amount of paintloss was assigned to the second and the third sides. According to the results, ‘surface pollution,’ had a 100% extent in the inscription.

Based on the reconstruction of the destructed parts, damage imaging, and image processing with computer programs, the damages have been divided into three general categories: 1) destruction of infrastructure materials, 2) paint loss, 3) surface pollution. The results indicate that the most serious damage was caused mainly by the fall of infrastructure materials, paint loss, and environmental pollution. Structural analysis showed that this inscription had all three structural components of inscriptions including the plant system in the upper part, the geometric system in the middle part, and the writing system in the lower part. The greatest similarity was in the plantmotif, and the greatest diversity was seen in the knots of the geometric part. Although these systems were not necessarily used in all architectural inscriptions, this inscription had all three parts in a structured way showing that the designer had designed each component in harmony to achieve a coherent whole.

Problem Definition: 

The Davazdah Imam Mausoleum of Yazd is one of the oldest buildings with inscriptions in Iran. The Grivar inscription of this building is Ornamental Kufic, which, unlike the simple Kufic, does not follow specific rules, and many innovations and modifications are made in it. Despite the high visual richness, the mentioned inscription has been deprived of formal analysis, while any but structured changes of the letters, the acceptance of complex forms, and additional elements make it worthy of further analysis. The current research seeks to find the answer to the following question: "what are the structural, visual, and formal characteristics of the Davazdah Imam Mausoleum of Yazd, and what rules did the designer establish in its design?"

This research aimed at identifying the structural and visual features of the Grivar inscription, such as writing style, proportions, and principles used in its composition.

The present research was carried out using a descriptive-analytical method, and the data was collected through library studies and field surveys.

The results showed that distancing from the legibility of words, exaggerating the shape of letters and basic proportions, is a method to achieve beauty and induce concepts beyond the literal meaning. However, the application of formal changes does not only mean losing the order and rules of script, but the designer has established certain principles and policies under the changes, to where maintaining the independent identity of the letters has been one of the primary design criteria.

Presenting the informative messages through the art and environmental graphic media may serve as a novel and effective method in increasing knowledge of the modern life. But the real amount of the efficacy is unknown among other factors due to various reasons. Using the field research approaches, the present study tried to find the rate of efficacy of this media on transferring the pedagogic messages through a case study on the knowledge acquisition of primary school students about environment. To achieve this goal, the other intervening factors which may affect the transfer of information to the students were controlled.The research population included female students studying at 4th, 5th and 6th grade primary schools of Isfahān. One of these schools was randomly selected as the target group. Then, an environmental stand was designed and installed within the school. To evaluate the efficacy of the designs, a series of questionnaire was administered. After investigating the validity of the questionnaires by experts, the reliability of them was measured via Cronbach’s Alpha method and then they were filled by 244 students and staff at school prior to and following the installation of the stands. Comparing the results of pre and post-tests supports the educational efficacy of the environmental graphic media and a significant change was observed in the information of the students, meaning that the information and knowledge of the students has increased up to 40%. The students considered the environmental graphic media to have more effect on increasing their knowledge about the subject compared to other effective factors like books and teachers.

The word culture has many different meanings. However, for anthropologists and other behavioral scientists, culture is the full range of learned human behavior patterns and is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society. Culture is a powerful human tool for survival, but it is a fragile phenomenon. It is constantly changing and easily lost because it exists only in our minds. Environmental Graphic Design (EGD) can play a role in social life of urban societies. EGD embraces many design disciplines including graphic, architectural, interior, landscape, and industrial design, all concerned with the visual aspects of way-finding, communicating identity and information, and shaping the idea of creating experiences that connect people to place. However, the question is how much this role may be quantitatively effective in a given community and contribute to different dimensions and aspects of its culture. The focus of this study is to measure, quantitatively, the effect of using EGD on primary school students’ attitude and behavior with regard to separating waste material. The study enjoys a time-series quasi experimental design. To this end, a primary school in Isfahan was randomly selected from among the girls’ schools. The sample who participated in the study were 230 fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-graders. After three pretests, the EGD was implemented where the students’ awareness towards separation of waste material was raised. The treatment included educating, informing, and encouraging the use of sorted waste baskets. This was followed by three post-tests. Both pretests and post-tests involved three measures each time a measure of the volume and weight of the waste material was obtained. A questionnaire was also used to study the effectiveness of EGD in improving the participants’ awareness, attitude, and behavior. The questionnaire was developed by experts in the field. Results showed significant difference between the amount of waste material before and after implementation of EGD. The results also showed changes in the participants’ attitude towards handling waste material. Results of the Q also showed improvements in the attitude of the school teachers and students in using waste material sorting baskets.