Charm and coquetry 1963

Curator: This is Hossein Behzad's "Charm and Coquetry" from 1963, a tempera on, well, something that isn't immediately clear. The image itself evokes the style of Persian miniature painting, a tradition Behzad revitalized. Editor: Wow, blue. Just…blue everything. If sadness were a color palette, this would be it. A beautiful melancholy. And what is she even doing with that mirror? It looks like she’s hugging it to a tree. Curator: Indeed, the pervasive use of blue, a recurring motif in Persian art, creates a sense of depth and serenity, though your melancholic interpretation resonates too. The woman, rendered in striking blue, stands in a fantastical, equally blue, landscape populated with vibrantly colored birds. She is adorned in detailed garments. And, yes, she does appear to be intimately connected to a circular object, possibly a mirror. Editor: I'm wondering about the mirror: its meaning. Does it show the reflection of who she is inside, or who she desires to be seen as by the outside world? Is this "Charm and Coquetry" a projection of herself, or what she really sees looking back? And is Behzad asking us to reflect upon what's behind our own mirrors? Deep. Curator: That's insightful! I mean, beyond the symbolism you could read in its circularity as eternity, or in her mirrored presentation with the bird life as a link between humankind and nature. Given the title and Behzad's personal history and creative intent, perhaps we're invited to meditate on the ephemeral nature of beauty, and self-regard itself? Tempera's subtlety emphasizes these elements well. Editor: That sounds about right! So this all-blue girl staring into her own soul amidst the bird song, is one beautiful, albeit kinda blue, existential crisis—delivered via 1960s Persian miniature painting. I dig it. Curator: Nicely put! It seems to me this exquisite scene holds more depth when seen through another's perspectives. It can certainly spark the mind and soul, if you let it.