Spring

I'm going to describe this season and the events which happens during the spring days in Iran in this page so that you will understand more about this season in Iran.

The idea:

This blog and final pictures are to illustrate why is Iran's seasons are special, and why they start the new year on spring. i will describe the events, history, and traditional ceremonies of spring. Then it will be shown to you that each event, tradition, and ceremony has a story and something special within it. our task is to tell a story with two images or pictures, something that has meaning for the viewers just like a personal diary. So when you look at them you will understand what is going on in spring in Iran and why is it so special to Iranian.

Execution of idea:

all the information and images about spring will be combined to just two pictures at the end. the process of putting together the images in a way that make sense for the one whose watching it. After you have read all the information in this page and get the idea of Iran's spring your understanding of that information will be realizable for you.

It would be interesting for people from other parts of world because they do not start they new year with spring, they would think why is not similar to their new-year. So hopefully all of your questions will be answered by studying and looking at the blog and the pictures. 

• New Calender: Spring is the starting season of Iran's calender, it is the Iranian's new year. It is the calender built by an Iranian name Omar Khayam the great. He was a Astronomer, poet, mathematician, philosopher who reformed the Persian calender, he is one of the most important Persian icon. follow this link to learn more about him: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omar_Khayy%C3%A1m
  Also if you are interested to know more about Iranian calender you can follow the link below: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_calendars
• Norooz & 7-sin: it is a traditional celebration of Iranians, the Iranian family gather together around a table with 7sin on it which called sofre-ye-haft sin and count down the minutes until the new year starts.With the passing of a year and the coming of another, Iranians get their tables ready with the seven articles that symbolize the triumph of good over evil. The belief dates back to antiquity but the practice is still very much alive. The seven articles usually used are vinegar ( Serkeh ), apple ( Seeb ), garlic ( Seer ), wild olive ( Senjed ), sumac ( Somaq ), juice of germinating wheat or malt mixed with flour and brought to a consistency ( Samanu ) and a dish of specially raised wheat or other seed spur ( Sabzeh ). Note that all articles begin with the Persian " S " sound so im going to use the 7-sin in the center of one of pictures because it symbolize the real event which people sit around the 7-sin. You can read more more about this event following this link:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowruz



7-sin

• Haji Firooz: He is man who symbolizes the rebirth of the Sumerian god of sacrifice, Domuzi, who was killed at the end of each year and reborn at the beginning of the new year. He paint his face with black paint because black is a ancient symbol of luck, then start to sing and dance on the streets with tambourines and trumpets spreading good cheer and heralds the coming of the new year.



Haji Firooz

• New Year dishes: Sabzi Polo Mahi (which is rice with green herbs served with fish) this dish is the most popular one for the first meal of the year. Reshteh Polo: rice cooked with noodles which is said to symbolically help one succeed in life. Kookoo Sabzi: Herbs and vegetable souffle, traditionally served for dinner at New Year. A light and fluffy omelet style made from parsley, dill, coriander, spinach, spring onion ends, and chives, mixed with eggs and walnut. Dolme Barg: A traditional dish of Azeri people, cooked just before the new year. It includes some vegetables, meat and rice which have been cooked and embedded in grape leaves and cooked again. It is considered useful in reaching to wishes.



Dolmeh Barg



Sbazi Polo Mahi



Reshteh Polo



Kookoo Sabzi

• Earth reborning: in this season all the plants and frankly he whole world will wake up from a long winter sleeping, blossom will grow on the trees. In the other hand it is a fresh start for every living thing in the planet.



Peach bloosom

• Khoone-tekooni: Iranians have a tradition called "khoone-tekooni" which doesn't have a exchange in English but the closest meaning is cleaning the house and everything in it to ground zero and then rearrange every furniture in the house, they also throw out any old or broken thing out and buy a new one before the new year.
• Eyd-Didani: Iranians will visit their families and relevance during the new year's holidays which they call it "Eyd didani". This tradition is very important for most Iranians because they believe by visiting each other they can forget about bad things happened between them and forgive each other, they try to start a fresh and close relationship with the ones they had problems in the last year.First they start with their own family like their parents, closer relations, and then other relatives; although the rule is for younger to visit older first, then older will visit them back.
• sizdah-bedar(the day of nature): in this event Iranians would go outdoor and enjoy the mother nature, the believe that in this day you have to rebound with the world and nature before starting the new year. So everybody would pack a picnic basket and leave their home's with their family's for the day, in this day they node the grass they had plant before the new year and put in 7-sin, make a wish, and send it on the water hoping their wishes would come true during the year. After a wonderful day with their family they spent the afternoon talking and playing traditional games, have a cup of "Ash" which is a Iranian postage and then they go back to their home. This is the final day of holidays and starting tomorrow they will go back to work with positive energy and good will. 

sending the grass on water

tieing the grass

13-bedar site

Kebab

• Climate Change: the tree spring month's name are Farvardin, Ordibehesht, Khordad. during these months weather begin to change and get warmer, so by the time summer begins it became very hot and dry in some part of  Iran.
•  Public holiday: after new year Iranians have 13 days of public holiday, but after the 5th day some organization and companies start working part time until the working day after sizdah-bedar (the nature day). All the universities and other organization with low need to be opened are closed until the day after sizdah-bedar.

The story behind two images:

Each image has many stories behind it which will explain about why season in Iran are different both in concept and events.

Picture No.1: 

This picture will mainly focus on Iranian new year "Norooz", because Norooz is most important events of all for Iranian. It does not matter what kind of person you are, how much wealth you have or which part of Iran you live when it is come to Norooz; All Iranian become united and gather around haft-sin for Norooz with their families and pray for a healthy body and a good year. It may be that poor people have a very simple Haft-sin compare to wealthy people, but the only important thing about it is they are alive and live together. Iranian people are not very demanding, they live happy as long as they have freedom, health, and their family.

There are many traditional events in Iran's spring such as Norooz, Eyd-didani, Sizdah-bedar, and many more which are very important for Iranian, it dos not even matter if they live outside Iran they will celebrate their new year anyway. 

The traditions you will see in this image are: Haft-Sin, Haji Firooz, elements of Haft-sin, Sizdah-Bedar, making wishes by grass tie and sending the Sabzeh on water.

Picture No.2:

This picture will concentrate on weather, new year's dishes, and 12 Iranian months. Iranian modern months name are: 1.Farvardin 2.Ordibehesht 3.Khordad 4.Tir 5.Mordad 6.Shahrivar 7.Mehr 8.Aban 9.Azar 10.Dey 11.Bahman 12.Esfand. These are the modern names which are drawn from ancient Avesta or Zoroastrian (Zartosht).

With starting the new year Earth also start to live again, blossom on trees, grass on the ground, rivers start to flow again by melting the snow on the mountains, and life start again. You can see all of these phenomena in this picture.

There is also new year's dishes which described earlier, Sabzi Polo Mahi, Kookoo Sabzi, Dolmeh Barg, and Kebab! all of these foods are very popular in Iran and they are really delicate. The reason they served for the new year explained before in this page, the main reason is good luck and reaching to wishes.

Design of two images:

Picture No.1: This image produced using seven different images. For background i choose peach blossom from a peach garden in northern Iran, the color of blossom is pink and sky is blue which makes a nice opposition for back ground and it is also a symbol of spring time. In the center you can see haft-sin which is the most important event in spring and that is why i put it the center of attention. There two images on the bottom left and right, these two images shows the tradition to put all seven sin in the haft-sin. On the top left and right there are two images plus one in center bottom illustrating the traditional sizdah-bedar (nature day) and events during that day. Finally you can see Haji Firooz at the center right which is another icon of celebrating new year as explained before.

There is triangle shape in this picture (3 by 3) if you look at the image that is obvious, i also used formal or symmetrical type of balance, and there is comparison or opposition between tradition and modern beliefs.

Picture No.2: eight pictures used in this image, for background pear blossom in a pear orchard. the reasons i choose this image are harmony between colors (white, green, and brown). As you can see pear blossom is white so it will contrast the images foreground it. In the bottom left corner there are three images from traditional Norooz dishes(Kookoo Sabzi, Dolmeh Barg, and Sabzi Polo Mahi) which bring taste in this image because they really are delicious and then in center bottom you can see the Kebab which is one of the traditional food for Sizdah-Bedar. On the right side you can find two images, one Alborz mountain in Northern Iran and another one Karaj river which flows from that mountain, this two images demonstrate the earth warming up, so by melting the snow from winter rivers start to flow again. Finally in the top left corner there is picture illustrating the 12 months of year based on astronomy.

Photo shop tools used

Picture No.1:
background(Peach blossom): Smart sharpen and filter (colored pencil)
Haft-Sin: Effects(outer glow, white), and smart filters (Plastic wrap)
Type tool: writing 7-Sin on Haft-Sin
Grass tie: Filter (smart sharpen), color balance
Grass on the water:Filter (smart sharpen)
Tradition 1 and 2: Filter (smart sharpen), vibrance
Haji Firooz: Maganetic lesso to cut, and stroke (white, 3 px)
Sizdah-Bedar: Effects (drop shadow)
and for the whole picture Adjustment: color balance, vibrance, levels, hue and saturation, and brightness/contrast
Picture No.2:
Background (Pear blossom): Filter (dry brush), and smart sharpen
Astronomy: Filter (smart sharpen), and Stroke (black, 2px)
New year dishes: magnetic lasso tool, Stroke (black 2 px)
River: Filter (smart sharpen), and Stroke (black, 2 px)
Alborz Mountain: Effects (bevel and emboss)
Kebab: Effects (inner glow, black)
Over all adjustment: color balance, hue/saturation. Brightness/contrast, vibrance, and levels.
Also i used: move tool, select tool, crop, lasso tool, spot healing in both pictures in producing process.

final pictures:

Pictire 1

Picture 2

References:
http://www.pixdaus.com/
http://www.panoramio.com/
http://www.wikipedia.com/
http://www.shahrzadworldpress.com/
http://www.payvand.com/
http://www.cyberfortunetelling.com/
http://www.flicker.com/
http://www.iran-us.persiangig.com/
http://www.nabz.com/
http://www.parimauk.multiply.com/
http://www.persiancultures.com/