Ali Rokhsaz, who is considered one of the major innovative and skilled students of Kamal-ol-Molk, is depicting the tomb of Sa’adi, the 13th century Iranian poet, in this painting. The significance of this particular painting is that Rokhsaz painted an older tomb of Sa’adi in 1939, before Mohsen Foroughi, the Iranian modernist architect, designed the new tomb inspired by traditional elements of Iranian architecture in 1951.
The painting perfectly fulfills the responsibility of the landscape painter of the late Qajar period, which is to record landscapes, events, Court life and, later, the life of ordinary people. Far beyond its aesthetic and painterly values, this artwork is a historic document of Iranian architecture and culture.
Ali Rokhsaz, who is also known for inventing the art of mosaic work, is illustrating the teachings of Kamal-ol-Molk in the present work. He had created an image of the tomb of Sa’adi using mosaic work in 1930. The application of diverse brushstrokes to produce different textures of trees, branches, bricks, earth and sky indicate the artist’s skill, making him even superior, more avant-garde compared to his teacher. The artist’s depiction of the tomb provides an accurate, entire view of the building and surrounding sights. The perfect application of perspective is conspicuous in this painting.
