Pathology of art glass production in modern Tehran workshops

Abstract

Glassmaking is one of the ancient arts of Iran and the production of glass works is considered a significant part of handicrafts in our country. The production of art glass in Iran has been based on its most original method, i.e., foot glass making, as well as some other methods, such as glass fusion, glass melting, etc. Unfortunately, in the past few years, glass making workshops suffered a severe recession and many of them were closed, and the production of the remaining workshops was also limited, and they could not have quality production and compete with European countries as in the past. The existence of stagnation and problems in this field led to the formation of a thesis With the title "Pathology of the state of art glass production in the workshops of contemporary Tehran". The type of research is applied in terms of purpose, in terms of analytical and descriptive nature, as well as in terms of the method of field implementation. The purpose of this research is to analyze the state of artistic glass production by focusing on the two techniques of foot glass making as the main method of producing handmade glass in Iran and glass fusion as a new academic technique, and it also reviews the problems that have arisen in this field. One of the results of this research is the knowledge and formulation of the problems of the production situation of glass factories, including the difficulty of obtaining raw materials, the lack of expert personnel, etc. Also, possible suggested solutions to improve the working conditions of artisans are among the topics raised in this treatise. Key words: Tehran glassmaking workshops, glassmaking, glass fusion, art glass Introduction: Human knowledge of glass goes back to more than 3000 years BC, the art of glassmaking is one of the oldest industries that humans have been engaged in. In Iran, glassmaking has a long history and significant works of this art have been left over the centuries. The important features of this element as well as its special charms have always attracted the attention of artists and craftsmen as one of the most practical art products.  This ancient art has maintained its position as one of the valuable fields of handicrafts in the country, but unfortunately, in the past few years, it has stagnated and problems have arisen in the process of producing glass products.

This thesis will be written in five chapters to answer the questions and prove or disprove the hypotheses: after the first chapter, which is called "General Research", the second chapter is called "Definitions and Theoretical Foundations of Research" to topics such as the influence of industries. Handicraft in the country's economy, the importance of packaging in the prosperity of handicrafts, as well as the identity and authenticity of the produced works will be pointed out. The third chapter of the treatise is called "Ethology of Art Glass Production in Contemporary Tehran Workshops" with a look at the most successful similar examples in Europe. In this section, by researching the active glass workshops of Tehran as the most important sample of the statistical population, the production situation and the problems that have arisen for the producers are discussed and analyzed, and the most possible solutions are presented for each of the problems. The fourth chapter of this dissertation is called "Looking at the glassmaking of several successful and prominent European countries with a focus on Murano glassmaking in Italy". And finally, the fifth chapter is called "Analysis of findings and final conclusion". In this chapter, the research questions will be answered with the help of the findings and the results obtained, so the confirmation or rejection of the hypotheses of this thesis will be determined. Chapter one: General research: Statement of the problem, executive logic, research method and statistical community. Research tools: Research objectives: Research questions: Assumptions. Research

Limitations of research

Research background

Problem statement

Traditional arts and crafts are a collection of original, indigenous and folk arts of every country that have deep and firm roots in beliefs, beliefs, customs, habits, customs and traditions and in general the spiritual culture of every society. According to its ancient history and civilization, the country of Iran has one of the most diverse handicrafts in the world, and today it has gained world fame in its place.. According to its ancient history and civilization, the country of Iran has one of the most diverse handicrafts in the world, and today it has gained world fame in its place. Art - The craft of glassmaking has deep roots throughout the ancient history of Iran and, like most other arts, it has gone through successful periods. From the ancient times to the Islamic era, Iranian artists have introduced this original art to other societies by making products such as dishes, jugs, perfume bottles, etc. Also, in today's era, the art of glass making has continued its work process by relying on a strong support. But in the past few years, the production situation of the glass industry has stagnated and is going through a period of decline. In the past, Foti glass workshops exported various products to European countries and also had a good domestic market. But now many workshops are closed and the problems of their production are increasing day by day. Considering the author's research and activities in the field of glass art in the academic and workshop environment as a new member in this field, as well as the indifference and indifference of the guardians towards the art of glass making as a mental concern for many years and considering the sensitivity of the issue of glass art as one of the important fields of handicrafts in our country, it was tried to focus this research on the pathology of the state of art glass production.   

Another method of glass production is glass fusion, which has become popular in Iran in the last two decades and is mostly offered in universities as a course unit in the form of specialized workshops. Due to the fact that the number of glass fusing workshops in the country is increasing day by day and most of its artists are graduates of the field of handicrafts, it is necessary to address the production status of this method. Therefore, by researching the two techniques of demi and fusing glass in working workshops, we examine the production situation and factors of their stagnation.

Since the awareness of the process of art glass production in the mentioned countries can be effective to achieve a favorable and useful conclusion, in a part of this treatise, we introduce the most successful similar examples in Europe.

2-1- Executive logic, research method and society Statistical

The type of research in this thesis, in terms of practical purpose, in terms of analytical-descriptive nature, and in terms of implementation method, was field and library. It should be noted that about the art of glassmaking, the authored and translated sources are very limited and parts of the contents of this treatise have been used from reliable sites and Latin books.

Because the subject of the research is the state of art glass production in contemporary Tehran glassmaking workshops, the best examples of the statistical community are the working workshops, and among them 6 active units of Mr. Ali Bakhtiari, Mr. Saeed Golkar, Ms. Farzaneh Khanlarkhani, Mr. Vafaei, Reza Esmaili and Vahid Zarepour. which are more prominent in terms of quality and work history have been researched and examined. 3-1- Research tools To conduct research and collect information for this thesis, which was in the form of a library and the major part of it was field, the tools used are as follows: 1- Persian and Latin books of the first category. It should be noted that the books written and translated in the field of hand-made glass are very limited. Therefore, part of the information has been obtained using authentic Latin books and sites and their translation. 2- Specialized and thematic interviews. In order to check the state of art glass production, the work was done in the form of an open interview with the producers and masters, and slip sheets were also used for some explanations. 3- A camera was used to document the various stages of the research. 4- A voice recorder was used to record the voice of the interviewees.

4-1- Research objectives

The purpose of this research is to investigate the state of art glass production in Tehran workshops. For this purpose, focusing on the two techniques of foot glass making as the main method of producing handmade glass in Iran and glass fusion as a new academic technique, the problems that have arisen in this field are reviewed and a suitable solution is provided for each of the damages.