Kamāl ud-Dīn Behzād
Kamāl ud-Dīn Behzād was a Persian and Afghani Medieval painter who lived from 1450 to 1535.
Behzād was born in Herat in modern day Afghanistan. Orphaned at an early age, he was raised by Mirak Naqqash who a prominent artist in Herat was. Behzād took up art early on, and from 1486 to 1506, he became the head of the royal ateliers, or artists’ workshop, in Herat. This workshop produced works under his direction.
In 1506, Herat was taken over by Esmāʿīl, the founder of the Ṣafavid dynasty, and Behzād worked for him. In 1514, when Esmāʿīl’s son left Herat for Tabriz in modern day Iran, he took Behzād with him where he became director of the royal library. In this position, Behzād was in charge of the illuminated manuscripts, and remained so until his death in 1535 at 85 years of age. Kamāl ud-Dīn Behzād is one of the most well-known artists of the Persian miniature style. Persian miniatures are small-scale works of art that were either book illustrations or standalone illustrations that were bound within albums called muraqqas. They are comparable to the miniatures found within illuminated manuscripts.
Persian miniatures were usually privately owned and meant to be displayed to a small audience; either just one person or a few people at a time. One person could collect a wide array of artists and styles and bound them in the same muraqqa if they would like to. These pieces used flat perspectives, with most focus and on the patterning of the borders and overall composition of the works.
Kamāl ud-Dīn Behzād had his own unique style, paying close attention to his works’ composition. He introduced greater naturalism to Persian painting through the individuals he painted and the expressions, gestures, and physicality they employed.
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