Spring- Summer 2018 , Biquarterly, Scholarly Journal of Theoretical Principles of Visual Arts A Survey of the Impact of Oil Discovery on the Iranian Modernist Painters (1940-1980)* Abstract Discovery of oil in 1908 set in moton a series of fundamental changes in politcal, economic and cultural structure of contemporary society of Iran. Through concentratng on the art of paintng, this study investgates the impact of the discovery of oil in the creaton of works of art by the Iranian modernist painters and tend to answer these questons that has oil afect- ed the creaton of artworks by the Iranian modernist painters? If it has, what were the factors involved in the process? What positon the southern oil-producing cites held for the modernist painters? Having referred to the press releases of the news agencies associated with the natonal oil com- pany during the years 1940 to 1980, the survey endeavors to go through the published pieces of news and reports and study the artstc actvites of modernist painters who lived temporarily or permanently in the south- ern oil-producing cites. In additon to the abovementoned press, we shall trace such impact in the works of the prominent painters of the country by referring to the history of Iran contemporary paintng. Thus, the research shall be conducted employing a descriptve-historical approach and the desk study of library resources which have proven to be a proper method for ataining to the required informaton. The preliminary studies indicated that there is a great volume of pieces of news and reports in the art discipline that well display the dynamism of art and culture in the southern oil-producing cites. A major part of such artstc actvites is re- lated to cinema, theater, music and literature; however, the press released regarding the works of visual arts and the presence of modernist painters in oil-producing cites is signifcant. The frst industrial cites of Iran emerged upon oil discovery. Due to the presence of western professionals, ethnic and ra- cial minorites, the formaton of urban middle class as well as the availability of various, modern and facilites, these cites turned into a proper venue for the presentaton of the artworks created by the modernist Iranian painters. The remarkable presence of a signifcant number of Iranian modernist painters in these towns during 1940 to 1980 was indicatve of their cultural progress. Some of these painters were hired by the Oil Company and setled in these cites while the favorable conditons prevailing in these cites including entertainment/cultural clubs, movie theaters and luxury restau- rants as well as growth of middle class who were the main customers of artstc products encouraged some others to go there for selling their products. The reason for choosing these 40 years (1940 to 1980) is the establishment of Tehran’s frst college of Fine Arts in 1940 as a venue for the pioneers of modernizaton movement in contemporary paintng and the beginning of imposed war in 1980 with Iraq’s invasion that incurred irreparable damage to the southern oil-producing cites partcularly Abadan; damages that have not yet been healed to date while keeping the memory of those good old pre-war days alive in the minds of the inhabitants of these cites. Although the discovery of oil has been the main factor leading to industrializaton of Iran and the creaton of southern oil-producing cites, but we should not forget that with Iran’s Consttutonal Revoluton, a new phase of tendency towards modernism emerged in the country and grew increasingly. With the reign of Pahlavid dynasty, Iran’s social structure under- went tremendous transformatons. These transformatons in art, especially paintng, emerged with the establishment of Tehran’s college of Fine Arts. Although another school of fne arts called ‘Sanaye Mostazrafeh’ had already been established by Kamal-ol-Molk during the rule of Naser al-Din Shah of Qajar dynasty, but it was the graduates of Tehran Fine Arts College who, through their own Ahmad Ravanjou Assistant Prof., Faculty of Art, Shahid Chamran University of Ahwaz, Shushtar Branch Email: ravanjoo.ahmad@gmail.com Mohammad Samadi Raad M.A. Graduate, Faculty of Art, Shahid Chamran University of Ahwaz, Shushtar Branch Email: mohamadsamadirad@gmail.com 5 * This artcle is an excerpt of the M.A. thesis of the second writer defended in Shahid Chamran University of Ahwaz, Shushtar Branch.