Early this morning, Nanaz, her son Jamshid, Sanaz, Sarvenaz, and I took a van up to Mazandaran Province for my annual art workshop at Darikandeh Village and returned back to Tehran by midnight. The drive was, as usual, up and down the Alborz Mountains and very dangerous.
On the road to Darikandeh Village in Mazandaran Province with Nanaz, her son Jamshid, Sarvenaz, and Sanaz.
In a local artist's workshop with his students where I was asked to give advice to the students.
This is a 300 year old wooden structure made for prayers and wish making located in the village next to Darikandeh. It is covered with paintings depicting various scenes. Unfortunately, it has not been maintained and much of the murals have started to chip away. It is very likely that Mokarrameh was influenced by these paintings. I can see many of her images on the wooden panels in this structure.
Darikandeh Village was bubbling with people when we arrived. I started the supply distribution right away and talked to the crowd about the procedure, then I gathered everyone around and did a quick demonstration on the use of the supplies. For the most part, the participants in the workshop were aware of the use of some of the supplies, but not all. I also engaged them in a little color mixing activity. Soon, all the eager artists were off to paint. It was great to see three generations sitting side by side and painting. This free art workshop draws people of all ages from the surrounding villages and honors the memory of Mokarrameh. The workshop lasted all day and it was really wonderful to see so many of the students return each year.
