Size isn't everything — even when it comes to visual art. But sometimes blowing things up doesn't hurt either.
The American painter Conley Harris took this philosophy to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA) recently, using the museum's collection of traditional Persian miniature paintings as inspiration for a new series of his own works.
A new MFA show, "Glorious Beasts in Persian Painting," displays the fruits of his labor. It sets up Harris's interpretations of pieces from the 15th, 16th and 17th century beside the ancestors on which he modeled them. In many instances, Harris draws directly on the motifs and styles of the miniatures, and reinterprets them in larger, more dynamic paintings. The result is a large-scale examination of the artistic elements that make the original pieces so intriguing.
One comparison is between a late 16th century ink drawing from the Safavid period entitled "Young Bears in a Landscape," and an image by Harris entitled "A Layering of Visions." At first, the similarities of the images seem limited to three bears depicted in similar styles. At the center of Harris' work are the same three bears present in the ink drawing, but in varying levels of completion and in a much larger, loosely-drawn style that starkly contrasts with the precise representation of the originals.
Upon closer inspection, these figures are not the only similarity. Harris also draws from the original color palette, but while the pigments are rather muted in "Young Bears in a Landscape," Harris punches those colors up and makes them a focal point of the image. He swathes the three bears in bright colors, as opposed to surrounding them with an exactingly drawn landscape. Harris focuses on certain elements of each image, manipulating them to create a painting that is more an exploration of the techniques used to construct the original than a replication of it.
A painting by Harris entitled "Shepard's Pet" and its accompanying Safavid piece from 1675 called "A Goatherd" also offer visitors an interesting comparison. Harris reexamines this painting in a number of ways. First, he shifts the focus from the goatherd to the goat. Second, he places a blown-up, watercolor version of the original animal at the center of his image. This he combines with a replication of an exquisite oak tree from "A Goatherd," as well as a playful use of pooled watercolor.
Harris' composition is an open discussion between the goat's head, the technical use of watercolor and the precise execution of the tree, as in the original image. Harris has put all of these elements together in a slightly haphazard assemblage that nonetheless enables the viewer to focus on the dynamic, multi-faceted execution of the original painting. The unfinished quality of Harris' piece calls attention to each individual elements he is using in "A Goatherd."
In "Glorious Beasts in Persian Painting," Harris beclouds the intensively-drawn Persian miniatures of the 16th and 17th century, teasing out a softer and more impressionistic feel even as he revels in the Persian artists' emphasis on technical skill. Harris' interest in Persian art from this period stems from a background of extensive world travel, as well as an artistic interest in the fine draftsmanship so characteristic of the period's work.
Harris' work is an exploration of the elements of Persian miniature painting, as opposed to an effort to duplicate them. This allows for a better examination of the beauty and skillful execution of the artwork of which he is so fond. Harris' work emphasizes beautiful techniques that can be hard to spot in the swirl and concentrated lines of the miniatures. His work allows viewers to better appreciate the quality of art they examine.
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Glorious Beasts in Persian Painting
In the Islamic Corridor, through April 11
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Avenue of the Arts
465 Huntington Avenue
617-267-9300
