This mural interacts with important events in society and does not remain silent. On the other hand, what it says is the words of the people, not the words of the government. In fact, we have somehow gone about making demands.”
Journalists Plus: In order to have your eyes on the mural of Valisir Square, which takes on a new face every now and then, you don’t have to be an adventurous person or your daily commute has to be this central square of the city. The Waliasr Square (AS) mural has been more than just an ordinary artwork for a long time now, and in addition to being a trend-setter in various subjects, it often becomes a trend in the virtual space and receives such reactions that are often positive and often negative.!
This important mural is the product of Oj media art organization’s House of Designers of the Islamic Revolution, which sometimes decides to align itself with a social trend and sometimes decides to be a trend-setter. The last high-profile work of this art group was the mural “Successful Women of Iran”, which also caused many scandals.
Since the wall painting of Walisir Square has found an independent artistic personality for a long time now, we discussed this matter with Muhammad Amjad (Director of the House of Designers of the Islamic Revolution).
It seems that the wall painting of Valisir (PBUH) Square has since become very important. With the disclosure of each new design, it is talked about in the virtual space and it has become popular many times over. Why do you think mural painting has become so important and popular, even though the city is full of different murals and paintings?
When we talk about a medium, the question of the dynamic of that medium is important. that you may act or respond to social events; In the sense of being ahead of the general community and looking to the future. This point is very important and is the same as that observed in the frescoes of Medan and Lyser. Another very important issue in my opinion is the category of continuity. There were other large-capacity panels, but due to a lack of continuity, they remained at the same level of a single panel. What distinguishes the mural of Maidan and Nasr (pbuh) is its dynamism.
This mural reacts to the important events of society and does not remain silent. On the other hand, what it says is the words of the people, not the words of the government. In fact, we have gone some way towards the demands.
Many people believe that the Valiasr Square (AS) mural is the exclusive property of a particular organization and not every artist can present their ideas to the mural public. What kind of thinking room is in this group?
The House of Designers of the Islamic Revolution is aimed at all designers and welcomes all capabilities of the designer community. Even today, it so happened that many people from different cities and in different parts of the country gave us work ideas and we tried to get in touch with these artists. By the way, we are glad to any idea. In this regard, a mural is displayed in Shiraz. We certainly use the capacity of the province and we use the capacity of country artists, both men and women. We even went about empowerment and held workshops. It is normal that the distinguished and well-known designers are busy and cannot cooperate with us all the time.
Our activity in creating cultural flow is not just a billboard; Instead, he has all the cultural elements on his side; Like cartoons, teasers, etc., they all come together to present an audience-friendly work; Now, in the meantime, maybe the mural view is a little hotter for you. However, we welcome all abilities. For example, the plan we presented for the World Cup; Its designer was an artist from Mashhad, we talked about his idea together and finally the work took shape.
Is your artistic activity limited to certain regions? In the sense that you work physically in some squares of Tehran?
The board physics is not important; Content matters. Indeed, it is the tone and subject matter that connects to the audience, not the length of the work. It may be important to be hygge, but connecting with an audience is even more important. Each campaign takes place in the city, there are other streams besides it. We definitely use all capabilities in the campaigns. Each billboard has its own different thematic elements.
Basically, what is the process of creating a mural from zero to one hundred?
In this regard, there is a comprehensive process. The first topic is the idea and we must enter the topic where we want to have an active approach to an event or create an action. We have to come to a specific approach to be able to create flow; Ideas are then brainstormed and discussed, and when the idea is cooked through, it is finalized. Of course, we also discuss the format of the presentation, for example, working in 3D, merging or photomontaging, etc. On the other hand, we are also experimenting with new technologies. For example, about the World Cup business, which we had a different experience with.
How many of these do you take?
It takes about one to two weeks.
Please also talk about production costs? How much does each job cost?
Talk to me about impact; At no cost!
Yes; We have heard many rumors of astronomical amounts. Isn’t it better to speak clearly about this yourself?
no; This is not the case. Better to talk about the effect. You only see the cost but not the benefit. What should be important to the media is the benefit of the work of art, not its cost.
Will the mural be reviewed prior to urban inspection? Has a person or organization prevented a work from being published?
However, two people who marry may not understand each other.
I mean before sorting. Is work checked somewhere before publication?
Yes; Checked It will be checked before publishing.
Have you ever participated in an audit or had a project rejected?
It will definitely happen. The views are different and an item can be removed or modified in the work. It usually goes into the details of these events, but the whole story is undamaged. Of course, I think a mural without sound is not a mural.
Do you consult with non-artists in this design and composition process? For example, are you a sociologist or media expert, or are you just a set designer?
Yes, we also benefit from the company of other people. For example, poets and writers are also with us. When we talk about a campaign, we are really talking about teamwork.
What are the most famous billboards that the designer house has put up on the wall so far?
The mural designs for “American Honesty,” “The World Cup,” and “Iran’s Successful Women” were the most marginal.
What is your favorite job?
Hajj Qassem’s mural was very popular among the people.
Talk about the Nowruz mural being displayed.
Yes; In addition to the Nowruz mural, we organized a campaign titled “Happy Iran” that included Eid Shaban, Nowruz and Ramadan. The theme of this mural is totally festive. We also considered the month of Ramadan as Eid Ramadan and our hashtag is #Happy_Heart.
Some time ago we had street riots and it is very difficult to produce visual content here in such circumstances; What do you think the artist should do in this situation?
Our point is the maximum capacity. We believe that all people are the social capital of the system and we are not on the side of any spectrum. For example, in the presidential elections, we talked about the topic of the elections, but even the image of the clergyman is not in the picture. We do not say incorrect words and do not publish ads! We are just trying to act consciously and ask.
Has there ever been an organization that asked for your cooperation and wanted to put a design on the wall?
Surely, many people like to reproduce a good example. For example, some work has been done in Iraq and the children of Iraq are moving forward on their own. Aran and Bidgol are very determined to cooperate. That’s good feedback, and of course, it’s hard to produce visual content 12 months out of the year that speaks at the same time to people. Several other walls are also being negotiated. But we do not work with private labels. The house does not accept custom work. Many organizations have requested the work, but the mural is not organized or organized.
Of course, it’s important that the geographic location matches the content; This is correct?
Everything has its own message. For example, the work “Pilgrims to Heaven” designed for the terrorist incident was shown in the shrine of Hazrat Shah Chirag, for the city of Shiraz; But a mural like “We Can” in the field of the regime’s achievements and speaking in the fields of medicine, science and the army, has its own function in each region. Or, for example, after the “Metropol” incident in Abadan, a group came and said that we are working on this plan and we accepted it. We care about the concerns of the general community and do not participate in a particular group. “Designers House” is a house that has the power to show people. Both an artist who has won an important award at art festivals and a person who just wants to do an internship can be accommodated in this house. We have an artist on our team who is in the 11th grade and he comes from school and works at the “House of Designers”.
During this time, did you receive any private notes from the audience or do you have any memories?
You can’t say memory. We mostly had hypothetical feedback. For example, Hajj Qassem’s mural had a lot of comments. The thing is, the mural has made headlines on its own several times. Domestic and foreign media are talking about this work. For example, we had a lot of comments about the mural of successful women. It is interesting that we did not mention the women of the Islamic Republic in this plan and we were talking about the women of Iran. I don’t know what some people were criticizing? In our business, we know Iran as Iran.
As a final question as a young artist, if I have an idea, can I share it with the ‘House of Designers’?
Yes; Artists can call the “House of Designers” or send us a message. We will definitely consider all ideas.
the end of the letter
