Mohsen Soheili, a student of Kamal-ol-Molk, is demonstrating his technical capabilities in this fine work. In addition to his skills in painting, Soheili is revealing his aesthetic vision of landscape painting which is one of the achievements of Iran’s landscape painting movement. This painting is akin to the French Romantic landscape paintings of the 19thcentury that manifested in Romantic-Naturalist movements such as the Barbizon School. In this work, Soheili is avoiding theatrical and utopian imitation of Romantic landscapes as much as he is trying to distance himself from academic traditions in which a landscape would be used as a background for historic stories. The result of this approach is an exploration of nature and its elements, exquisitely crystalized in this painting, making Soheili an outstanding pupil of Kamal-ol-Molk in creating perspective.
Mohsen Khansari Soheili, the son of Mirza Mahmoud Khan, was born to a culturally refined family in Tehran. He was the elder brother of Ahmad Soheili Khansari, a reputable researcher, poet, and copy editor who is also the author of an important book titled “Excellence of Art”, expounding on Kamal-ol-Molk and his oeuvre. He gradually came to fame through his still life and landscape paintings and sold a majority of his works in his first solo exhibition (circa 1926). Landscape painting, such as the one here, was a favorite genre of the artist after that.
Owing its inception to the endeavors of Kamal-ol-Molk, the School of Fine Arts on the southern edge of Negarestan Garden would admit two groups of students keen on studying art. The first group, comprising official students of the school, would obtain the official diploma of the school upon completion of a course over a few years. The second group included unofficial students who would take a shorter course. Mohsen Khansari Soheili belonged to the first group and studied at the school for a long time. He was often seen among the students of the school, posing for a photograph with Kamal-ol-Molk. No doubt, he was one of the official, eminent students of Kamal-ol-Molk. A report that was provided on the activities of students during an entire course read, “Mohsen Khansari Soheili studied perspective and portraiture, and he is an eminent master.”[1] In the report, which is considered a historic document, reference has been made not only to his technical capabilities but to his popularity during the late 1920s.
In general, Soheili’s best style in painting included still life, landscape painting and portraiture. Nonetheless, he was one of the traditional artists who broke free from the bonds of Classicism, as Impressionist brushstrokes are quite evident in the present work.
[1] Soheili Khansari, Ahmad, Excellence of Art, Elmi Publishers, 1989, p 82