Photographer Mehrdad (aka @m1rasoulifard) tours the mesmerizing mosques of Iran and looks upward for inspiration. As he’s wandering through both ancient and iconic mosques in his country, the artist mainly focuses on the designs that evoke an impressive amount of history. Since the mosque ceilings are his main muse, Mehrdad often finds sweeping mosaics and incredibly intricate works of geometry when he points his lens to the sky. These designs are not only incredibly vibrant and detailed, they also contain thought-provoking symbolism that breathes life into the mosques’ architecture.
What’s perhaps most interesting is that, without context, one may not realize that Mehrdad’s photographs zero in on ceilings. On their own, these incredible snapshots look like elaborate mandalas and some even appear as though they’re the inside of a kaleidoscope.
To see what labyrinthine ceiling catches the artist’s attention next, you can follow Mehrdad on Instagram.
Above: Hazrate-masomeh’s mosque in Qom, Iran
Hazrate-masomeh’s mosque in Qom, Iran
Sheikh-lotfolah’s mosque in Esfahan, Iran
Sheikh-lotfolah’s mosque in Esfahan, Iran
Jameh’s mosque in Esfahan, Iran / 900 years old
Imam’s mosque in Esfahan, Iran
Jameh’s mosque in Shahrake-gharb, Tehran, Iran
Chahar-Bagh’s school in Esfahan, Iran
Mas’odie’s building in Tehran, Iran
Shahe-cheragh’s mosque in Shiraz, Iran
Hazrate-masomeh’s mosque in Qom, Iran
Shahe-cheragh’s mosque in Shiraz, Iran
Hazrate-masomeh’s mosque in Qom, Iran
Hazrate-masomeh’s mosque in Qom, Iran
Kolah-farangi’s building in Nazar’s garden in Shiraz, Iran
Chehel-soton’s palace in Esfahan, Iran
Chahar-Bagh’s school in Esfahan, Iran
Shahe-cheragh’s mosque in Shiraz, Iran
Vank’s church in Esfahan, Iran
Bazare-gheisarie in Esfahan, Iran
Alighapoo in Esfahan, Iran / 400 years old
Alighapoo’s palace in Esfahan, Iran
Kolah-farangi’s building in Nazar’s garden in Shiraz, Iran
Shahe-cheragh’s mosque in Shiraz, Iran
Mehrdad: Instagram
via [Fubiz, designboom]