Australia’s Powerhouse Museum to host rarely-seen Persian arts

The Australia’s Powerhouse Museum, which is the major branch of the Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences in Sydney, is to host a collection of rarely-seen Persian arts and crafts.

Titled “Iranzamin” (Land of the Persian), the exhibit will be opening to the public on March 19. And according to the organizers, the event is the first exhibition of Persian arts and crafts acquired by the Powerhouse Museum since its founding in 1880.

The opening of Iranzamin coincides with the Persian New Year or Nowruz on March 21. Therefore, the Powerhouse Museum has arranged programs that include the celebrations of Nowruz by spreading Haftsin, a table traditionally set for the Persian New Year, and Sizdehbehdar, the Persian national day for the celebration and admiration of Mother Nature, which will be held in the Powerhouse Museum on April 3, 2021.   

According to the museum, the exhibition will show how objects inspired by traditional arts and crafts were used in Persian society, focusing on seven themes: joy and happiness; purification and cleansing; spirituality and devotion; poetry and calligraphy; rituals and performance; patronage and craftsmanship; nature and design.

Furthermore, a diversity of materials and techniques, including hand-woven crafts, carpets, and rugs; arms and armor; glass, ceramics, and tiles; textiles, embroidery, and foundry will be introduced at the Iranzamin exhibition.

The influence of Persian culture on non-Iranian craftsmen and artists such as Australian painter and textile designer Florence Broadhurst will be also examined during the programs.  

MM/FM