Art biennials in Iran, as the most significant official events in the visual arts, play a role that extends beyond the mere exhibition of artworks, functioning as institutional mechanisms for the production, stabilization, and reproduction of artistic meaning, identity, and values. Among these, miniature painting (negārgarī) biennials occupy a distinctive position in shaping the discourse of contemporary Iranian miniature painting due to their engagement with the interplay between pictorial tradition and the demands of contemporary art. This study, grounded in the theoretical framework of social constructionism, critically analyzes the Fifth Iranian Miniature Painting Biennial and investigates how this event represents and stabilizes the meaning and identity of contemporary miniature painting through its official mechanisms.

The research employs a qualitative, analytical–interpretive approach. Data were collected from official biennial documents, including calls for submission, curatorial statements, regulations, and exhibition catalogues, alongside the critical analysis of selected artworks. To complement the documentary analysis and gain deeper insight into institutional and discursive processes, semi-structured interviews were conducted with selected artists and jurors associated with the biennial. The collected data were interpreted using key concepts of social constructionism.

Findings indicate that the Fifth Iranian Miniature Painting Biennial, by emphasizing the redefinition of the relationship between tradition and contemporaneity, legitimized a particular model of contemporary miniature painting through its selection processes, judging criteria, and discursive frameworks. This process contributed to stabilizing approaches that, rather than fostering experimental or innovative practices, operate within controlled readings of tradition, thereby limiting the emergence of pluralistic and critical perspectives. The study concludes that the Fifth Biennial should not be regarded merely as a reflection of contemporary miniature painting but as an active institution engaged in the social construction of meaning, identity, and artistic value. A social constructionist analysis of the event can provide a critical foundation for reconsidering biennial policies and promoting diverse and polyphonic approaches within contemporary Iranian miniature painting.