Cultural History Approach towards the Art of the Middle East:The Concept of Otherness in the Works of Iranian and Middle Eastern Arab Artists

The art of the Middle East has received the attention of the media, museums and art institutions in the context of the political developments of the 21st century. However, the art of this region cannot be reduced to political history, but the cultural history of the art of the Middle East shows another aspect of the formation mechanism of this art movement. Cultural history shows how the artists of this region try to get out of the alienating view of the West. In this paper, the following question is pursued: How can Middle Eastern artists overcome the dualism of self/other or the otherness of the West in the face of Middle Eastern art? It is shown how the transition from the post-modern to the trans-modern paradigm has created a context for crossing self/other dualism in the experience of artists. Results of analyzing the content and themes of the works of regional artists indicate that some of the contemporary artists follow a new path in the contemporary art of the Middle East by using indigenous, local and traditional meanings in their works.