TEHRAN – An exhibition of Persian paintings opened on Saturday at the Shanghai Art Collection Museum to celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Iran and China.

The exhibition entitled “Persian Treasures – Iranian Miniature Exhibition” is showcasing a rich collection loaned by the Malek National Library and Museum and Reza Abbasi Museum, two major Tehran-based art centers which preserve rich collections of Persian paintings.

A number of the works have also been loaned by the Isfahan Museum of Contemporary Art and Chehel Sotun Palace Museum in Isfahan.

The exhibition, which will run until February 27, 2022, is being organized with contributions from the Consulate General of Iran in Shanghai and the Bordbar Collection in Isfahan.

The exhibition is divided into four sections, Royal Glimpse, Book of Kings, Dynamic Folklore and Melody of Poetry.

Earlier in August, the Powerlong Art Center in Shanghai also organized an exhibition of traditional and modern Persian artworks to mark 50 years of diplomatic relations between Iran and China.

The exhibition titled “Dialogue beyond Time & Space – 2021 the Legend of Persia Art” was organized to introduce Persian civilization, allow Chinese viewers to feel contemporary Iranian culture, and extend friendship between the two nations.

Paintings, sculptures and art installations created by 43 contemporary Iranian artists presenting a combination of Persian classic and modern art can be seen by Chinese viewers for the first time.

Noting that art is the essential way of communication and understanding between nations, curator Hossein Bordbar said that the exhibition vows to present the contemporary Iranian arts which demonstrate the actual trends in the minds of Iranian artists to the Chinese people, bringing the two civilizations together in the modern era.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the exhibition, Ramezan Parvaz, consul general of Iran in Shanghai, said that Iran and China have a friendship dating back to the ancient Silk Road era, and the profound interaction between the two countries in trade and culture has been extended to the present, with their cultures enjoying a vast range of areas in common.

Photo: Visitors take photos of a Persian painting on display at the Persian Treasures – Iranian Miniature Exhibition at the Shanghai Art Collection Museum on December 4, 2021. (Global Times/Chen Xia)

MMS/YAW