IRANIAN ART ON DISPLAY IN MUSKAT

The Iranian pavilion at the international handicraft market has been attracting a large number of visitors. Iran is participating first time in the Muscat Festival. The artistes including enamel painters, carpet weavers, engravers, sculptors, potters and painters. Many artistes, deeply involved in their work, man the various stalls lining the pavilion. Iranian articrafts hold a strong appeal for their elegant simplicity and their rich variety in form and colour. The items on display include minakari or enamellings, the art of painting, colouring and ornamenting the surface of metals by fusing over it brilliant colours that are decorated in an intricate design. It is said Iranians invented the art of enamelling or minawork metalcraft and spread it to countries such as India. The process of enamelling involves painting the copper plate using the colour white three times over and then putting it in the oven. After the white paint dries, work starts on the design using traditional colours such as blue and green.