An Analysis of Kamal al-Molk’s Artistic Decisions in Qajar Art Field based on Bourdieu’s Theory

In this article, the aim has been to analyze Kamal al-Molk's artistic decisions in the field of Iranian art in the Qajar era using the descriptive-analytic method. This analysis has been in four main periods of Kamal al-Molk's life, which include: 1- Examining Qajar art field before Mohammad Ghaffari arrived in Tehran 2- Examining Mohammad Ghaffari's position in the art field from the age of 12 until entering Nasser al-Din Shah's court 3- Examining the position of Kamal al-Molk in Nasser al-Din Shah's court 4- A study of Kamal al-Molk's character and position in the European art field. The main research question is: Could Kamal al-Molk learn the 19th century style instead of the 17th century style of painting during his cultural trip to Europe and bring that to Iran? In the study of the first period, it is determined which artists are present in this field and what impact they have each had on this field among other issues. Among the artists, we can mention Mohammad Sadegh, Abdullah Naghash, Mehr Ali, Mirza Baba Isfahani, Abu Trab, and Sani al-Molk. The studies in the second period are as follows: Identifying the famous artists of this period and also determining the influence of artists on the Qajar art field; the result of which has had a great impact on the artistic life and artistic future of Kamal al-Molk. Artists studied in this historical context include: Lotfali Shirazi, Mahmoud Khan Saba, Ismail Jalayer, and Mazin al-Dawlah. Another research that has been done in this historical context is the study of the role of Mazin al-Dawlah in the education of Kamal al-Molk and the choice of Mohammad Ghaffari's artistic style towards the style of realism. The third issue to be studied is the position of Kamal al-Molk in the art field of Nasser al-Din Shah. This historical context is one of the most important positions of Kamal al-Molk for him; positive things happened and it can be considered a turning point in Kamal al-Molk's life. In this field of art, there is a powerful nucleus in the center of the field that causes the field of art to become stronger and stronger, and this powerful nucleus is none other than Nasser al-Din Shah Qajar, who was a supporter of Kamal al-Molk. One of the important events that happened to Kamal al-Mulk in this period is that he is no longer a student of Dar al-Fonun school and in addition to gaining the position of a painter, he also becomes a professor. Of course, he had other students besides Naser al-Din Shah. During this period, sources state that Kamal al-Molk received a salary from Nasser al-Din Shah for the paintings he painted, which shows the progress and strength of Kamal al-Molk's position in the Qajar field of art. In this course, an independent and dependent discussion is presented. The dependent pole indicates Kamal al-Molk's dependence on the center of the field, and the independent pole indicates his lack of dependence on the center of the field. In this period of Kamal-ol-Molk's life, he is at the center of the field, because he is in the center of Naser al-Din Shah’s field, without whom, Kamal al-Molk would have lost his special place, and of course, this dependence on the central core of the field caused controversy, and giving in to the tastes of the court and the king was against the will of Kamal al-Molk. Kamal al-Molk did not even have the will to change the tastes of the courtiers and the king during this period and began working as a court painter. One of the instructions given to Kamal al-Molk during this period was to draw a picture of the king and his children in a realistic style. In that period, the presence of the image of the king on the billboards, banknotes and even newspapers showed the strength of the foundations of the monarchy. Based on findings and according to Bourdieu's theories, it can be said that considering that Kamal al-Molk was located in the dependent pole of Qajar art field, he had to accept the rules governing the art field. One of the most important events that took place in this period is the arrival of the camera in Iran, which itself has had a great impact on the work of all artists, including painters. The arrival of the camera in Iran became one of the reasons for the attention of artists and art lovers to the Realistic style. During the reign of Nasser al-Din Shah, painters were sent to Europe to study, and Kamal al-Molk was no exception. In this period, we also see his copies of paintings by artists such as Rembrandt and Thyssen. The first painter Kamal al-Molk came into contact with in Europe was Fantin Latour, whose style has also been influential in the choice of classical style and realism by Kamal al-Molk. He has also been considered in European societies during this period, so it can be said that Kamal al-Molk has also been present in the European art field.