A Comparative Recognition of Form and Content Transformation of the Triple Archetype with Emphasis on the Tree Motif in Iranian Carpets

Abstract

Abstract Drawings on artwork in the form of ancient symbolic motifs from prehistoric times to the present day have been illustrated in abstract and naturalized manner. These concepts have purposes such as magic, amulet, ornament, allegory, lived experience, narrative, and so on. The triple archetype is also considered as one of such original and symbolic motifs. In Iranian art this motif has preserved its essence over time and in various governmental, political and religious circumstances and has moved from one era to another and has advanced with the development of ethnic groups. The three constituent elements of such an archetype consists of plant (tree or flower), human and animal (cattle and birds) elements which include a central pattern and two symmetrically patterns appearing on the two sides of the central feature. The pivotal point is how the Holy Trinity evolved from the sacred space to the decorative space. This transition has been maintained in various ways and is still present in the context of contemporary Iranian art. The purpose of this study is to describe and analyze 58 selected framed samples of Iranian paintings with an iconographic approach. These frames have been selected from Proto-Elamite to Contemporary with emphasis on the triple archetype on the Persian carpet which has 39 items. The results of the study show that traces of symbolism and sacredness are evident in the drawing of artifacts on the context of artworks, in spite of its ornamental decoration, the artist's and the audience's affection is evident. This attachment is the same aesthetic sense of the institutional in totemic symbolic objects. Notable in these trilogies are their gender, which some see as central to feminine and masculine motifs despite the disagreement of others. Research aims: 1. Achievement of the developmental stages of form and content of the trilogy with focus on the variable tree element in the application of motifs in Iranian art. 2. Investigation on the form and content of the transformation of the triple archetype with emphasis on the motif of the tree in Persian carpets. Research questions: 1. What is the reason for applying the triple archetype from the past to present in the daily life of the people? 2. What developments have occurred in term of form and content on the tree motif?