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Damonfar Painting Biennial set for October

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TEHRAN – The fifth edition of the Damonfar Painting Biennial, which is for artists under 25, will be held in Tehran in October.
 
Damonfar is the Iranian representative of France’s Pebeo and Canson, and Germany’s Faber-Castell, three companies that manufacture art materials. 
 
Quilo, the Iranian-German company producing markers, is also collaborating in the biennial this year, Damonfar Managing Director Seifollah Puya-Rad said in a press release on Sunday.
 
The biennial will be held with a focus on painting, but works created with Quilo markers have also been added to the side-section programs of the biennial this year, he added.
 
Young artists are asked to upload a maximum of three works to the website of the biennial, www.iranartfestival.com, before August 22, he added.
 
The Damonfar Company is the main organizer of the biennial, which was established in 2006. 
 
“The event aims to develop art, support young artists, and introduce gifted young artists,” Puya-Rad said.
 
The first place winner will get a free trip to Germany to visit the Faber-Castell Company and attend the Academy of Arts in Berlin, he said.
 
The biennial will be held in the gallery of the Mellat Cinema Complex from October 10 to 24.
 
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Golestan Gallery to host “100 Works, 100 Artists” exhibit

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TEHRAN – A large collection of works by 160 artists is scheduled to go on display at the 22nd edition of the exhibition “100 Works, 100 Artists”, which will open at Tehran’s Golestan Gallery on Friday.
 
Works by contemporary artists including Sohrab Sepehri, Mohammad Ehsaii, Parviz Kalantari and Mehdi Hosseini have been selected for the exhibition, gallery director Leili Golestan said in a press release on Sunday.
 
All works will be offered at reasonable prices, she added. 
 
She also said that works by young talented artists will also go on show at the exhibit.
 
She noted that artworks in the forms of painting, sculpture and calligraphy will be offered at affordable prices.
 
“People from all walks of life will be able to find an artwork to buy at the exhibit,” she added.
 
The exhibit will run until August 20 at the gallery located at 42 Kamasaii St. in the Darus neighborhood.
 
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Parsa Piruzfar to stage “Out at Sea” at Tehran theater

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TEHRAN – A troupe led by actor/director Parsa Piruzfar will perform Polish dramatist Slawomir Mrozek’s “Out at Sea” at the Iranshahr Theater Complex on August 26.
 
Siavash Cheraghipur, Hutan Shakiba and Ali Ebdali are the members of the troupe, and Piruzfar will also play a role in the play.
 
Translated into Persian by Piruzfar, “Out at Sea” is the story of three men who find themselves on a raft in the middle of the ocean. 
 
Someone has to be sacrificed to be eaten by two others and the three are struggling to find a ‘just’ and ‘humane’ way to decide on the right person.
 
In July 2013, Piruzfar staged Irish playwright Marie Jones’ “Stones in His Pockets” at the Iranshahr Theater Complex. It was warmly welcomed by the theatergoers.
 
He also performed American playwright David Mamet’s “Glengarry Glen Ross” at the complex in 2011. 
 
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Music by world composers to highlight Iranian pianist’s recital

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TEHRAN -- Musical pieces by world renowned composers, including Chopin, Bach and Beethoven, will be performed during a recital by Iranian pianist Arman Fahimi in Tehran.
 
The performance will be held at the Rudaki Hall on August 1.
 
He also plans to perform some of his own compositions during the concert.
 
“I plan to perform pieces, which are attractive for regular people,” he told the Persian service of MNA.
 
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Producers to build “City of Mice 2” on rubble of wars in Mideast

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TEHRAN -- The producers of “The City of Mice 2” have announced their plan to dub the Iranian film into Arabic to entertain children in the war-torn regions of Gaza, Syria, and Iraq in the near future.
 
“Due to the human catastrophes that have affected the lives of children in Gaza, Iraq and Syria, we decided that ‘The City of Mice 2’ should help the precious children as much as it can,” one of the two producers of the project, Manijeh Hekmat, told the Persian service of ISNA on Sunday.
 
“We will try to screen ‘The City of Mice 2’ for the children on the rubble of collapsed buildings in the war-torn countries,” she added.
 
She addressed the children and said, “During these unjust wars, we want to share with you the happiness of Iranian children by watching this film alongside you, and thereby to teach the arrogant rulers proper human behavior.”
 
Hekmat said that the screenings will be held with the help of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
 
“The City of Mice 2” is a sequel to the 1984 big-screen hit “The City of Mice”, which was produced with the puppet characters from the children’s TV series “The School of Mice” (1981-1984).
 
The movie, now in its postproduction stage, has been directed by Marzieh Boroumand, and produced by Hekmat and Ali Sartipi.
 
The Iranian premiere of the film is scheduled for August.
 
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Art news in brief

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Iran, Italy to expand museum collaborations
 
TEHRAN -- Iran and Italy have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to expand their ties on museum issues.
 
The MOU was signed by National Museum of Iran Director Nahnaz Gorji and Italian Ambassador Luca Giansanti in Tehran on Monday.
 
Giansanti inked the MOU as a representative of Italy’s Ministry of Heritage and Cultural Activities, the Capitoline Museums, and the Vatican Museums.
 
 
“Oliver Twist” on stage in Tehran
 
TEHRAN – An Iranian troupe led by director Asghar Khalili is performing a stage adaptation Charles Dickens’ magnum opus “Oliver Twist” at Tehran’s Hafez Hall. 
 
Elham Shabani, Khosro Shahraz, Manuchehr Alipur, Negin Ebdali and Mojtaba Vashian are the main members of the cast.
 
 
Tehran hall hosting “Each His Own Wilderness”
 
TEHRAN – An Iranian troupe is performing British Nobel-prize winner Doris Lessing’s drama “Each His Own Wilderness” at Tehran’s Hafez Hall.
 
Seyyed Mehdi Ahmadpanah is the director of the troupe, which is composed of Golchehreh Sajjadieh, Hushang Qavanku and Seyyed Javad Yahyavi.
 
The play is about Myra Bolton, who has fought for socialist causes all her life, and who lives in a world filled with politics and activists.
 
 
German ambassador visits Iran’s national library
 
TEHRAN – The German ambassador to Tehran, Michael Baron von Unger, visited the National Library and Archives of Iran (NLAI) last Monday.
 
During the visit, Unger and NLAI Director Seyyed Reza Salehi-Amiri discussed the expansion of relations between the library and German cultural centers.
 
 
Iranian House of Cinema celebrates birthday of Masud Kimiaii
 
TEHRAN – The 73rd birthday of filmmaker Masud Kimiaii was celebrated at the Iranian House of Cinema on Monday evening.
 
Kimaii began his career as a filmmaker with “Come Stranger” in 1968. “Qeysar” (1969) and “Reza, the Motorcyclist” (1970) are among his credits. His latest film “Metropol” has recently premiered at Iranian theaters.
 
 
Persian version of “Prince and the Pauper” hits Iranian bookstores
 
TEHRAN -- A Persian translation of an abridged version of “The Prince and the Pauper” has recently been published in Iran.
 
The Canadian author Kathleen Olmstead shortened Mark Twain’s popular novel.
 
Parastu Avazzadeh translated the book into Persian and Qadyani Publications published it.
 
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Works by Iranian artists on display at Jeddah gallery

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TEHRAN – A collection of works by five Iranian artists is on display in an exhibition at the Athr Gallery in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
 
“Nail” and “Trinity” by Iranian sculptors by Sahand Hashemian and Afruz Amiqi and the drawings “Carpet” by Narges Hashemi, and “Drawing 2” and “Gatch” by Monir Farmanfarmaian have been selected for the exhibit entitled “The Language of Human Consciousness”, the organizers have announced.  
 
The collection also includes the mixed media works “Black Gold” and “Imposition” by Babak Golkar.
 
The exhibition, which runs until October 10, also showcases works by over 30 other artists from around the world.
 
The exhibition, which opened on July 10, has been organized with the help of over 20 leading international galleries, including London’s Lisson Gallery and Dubai’s Third Line.
 
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New York gallery to display works by emerging Iranian artists

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TEHRAN -- Works by a group of emerging Iranian artists will be showcased in an exhibition at the Rogue Space Gallery in New York during September.
 
The works have been selected by Roya Khajavi-Heidari and Masud Nader for the exhibit entitled “Portraits: Reflections by Emerging Iranian Artists”.
 
Paintings, photos, sculptures, and mixed media and video works by over 20 artists, including Ahmad Morshedlu, Alishia Morasaii, Arash Sedaqatkish, Babak Bidarian, Bahar Behbahani, Dadbeh Basir, Hossein Edalatkhah, Jinus Taqizadeh, Morteza Purhosseini, Nasser Bakhshi, Samira Alikhanzadeh, and Sepanta Qasemkhani, will be put on display at the exhibition, which will be held from September 17 to 29.
 
The artists were born, raised and educated in the United States.
 
“The emphasis on emerging Iranian art does not aim to ghettoize the artists either geographically or philosophically,” Khajavi-Heidari and Nader said in a press release.
 
“Rather, by holding such a show in New York City—the epicenter of the global contemporary art market—we hope to highlight the talent of these seldom-recognized artists and to celebrate their courage, stamina and love of their craft,” they added.
 
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Stop the killing in Gaza: Asghar Farhadi

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TEHRAN -- Oscar-winning Iranian filmmaker Asghar Farhadi has asked international organizations to stop the Israeli crimes in the Gaza Strip.
 
“Israel’s action in Gaza is of a dictatorial nature and I hope the killings will stop very soon,” Farhadi said during a meeting a large group of Iranian cineastes held at the Tehran Blood Transfusion Center on Saturday to donate blood to the victims of Israeli bombardments in Gaza.
 
“Fortunately, the world has seen the crimes of the Israelis in Gaza and the people of the world have given a negative response to the inhumane behavior,” he added.
 
“As a member of the Iranian House of Cinema, I have a great deal of sympathy for people of Gaza deep in my heart, so I have attended this humanitarian gathering,” he stated.
 
Iranian artists and cineastes have organized several meetings over the past three weeks to show their solidarity with the people Gaza. 
 
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Films to explore agony of Iran-Iraq war at Tokyo festival

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TEHRAN -- Five Iranian films, which highlight the wounds caused by the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war, will be screened during a festival in Tokyo on August 8 and 9.
 
Entitled the Iran Peace and Friendship Film Festival, the event has been organized by the Iranian embassy in Tokyo, the embassy has announced on its website.
 
“Track 143” directed by Narges Abyar, “All Alone” by Ehsan Abdipur, “The Night Bus” by Kiumars Purahmad, will be shown during the first day of the festival.
 
“The Reward of Silence” directed by Maziar Miri and “Memories for All Seasons” by Mostafa Razzaq-Karimi are scheduled to be screened on the second day.
 
The film will be shown with Japanese subtitles.
 
“The selected films depict Iran’s pacifism and the agony of the war,” the Iranian embassy reported.
 
The festival will be held at the Akasaka Community Plaza and the filmmakers will attend Q and A sessions after the screenings of the films.
 
Note: The Tehran Times quoting some Persian news agencies published a story entitled “Hiroshima festival to honor Iranian cineastes with paper cranes” on August 2. The story appears to be baseless and we apologize for having published it erroneously.
 
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IRIB launches campaign to support children of Gaza

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TEHRAN – The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) has launched a campaign to announce support for the oppressed children of Gaza. 
 
Entitled “Children for the Children”, the idea of the cyber campaign has been proposed by the anchor of Iranian children’s favorite TV program Uncle Purang (Dariush Farziaii).
 
In a press conference held here on Sunday, TV producer of children’s programs Moslem Aqajanzadeh and Uncle Purang elaborated on their reasons behind the campaign, the Persian service of MNA reported on Sunday.
 
“People showed their support during the International Quds Day demonstration, but we should not forget the children who are being killed in Gaza every day,” Aqajanzadeh said.
 
“We need the support of people and the media. We have launched two websites, www.gaza2014.ir and www.gazachildren2014.com, where internet users can sign a petition in support of the children of Gaza to be later submitted to international organizations,” he explained.
 
“The teasers to promote the campaign are due to be aired on international Iranian TV channels available on satellite in Persian, English and Arabic,” Aqajanzadeh said.
 
In addition, he said, “We also plan to communicate with the artists working for children through emails and invite them to join the campaign.”
 
Uncle Purang next expressed his happiness to have been able to begin a campaign to show solidarity with the children of Gaza. “I believe the first victims of this savage war are the innocent children who have the right to live despite their nationality and religion. 
 
“We disagree with any violence against children especially in Gaza and we hope this campaign would begin and continue its activity to achieve a life without bombardment for children,” he added.
 
Several artists including actor Parviz Parastuii and filmmaker Kamal Tabrizi have announced their support and have promised to promote the campaign.
 
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Art news in brief

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Book on Muslims’ social and political life released
 
TEHRAN -- “The Islamic World”, an eight-volume book on the social and political life of Muslims, has been published by Amirkabir, a major Iranian publishing company, in Tehran.
 
The book, which has been compiled by Seyyed Yahya Rahim-Safavi, was unveiled during a ceremony in Tehran.
 
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and a number of cultural figures attended the ceremony.
 
 
Persian carpets on display at IAF 
 
TEHRAN – The Iranian Artists Forum (IAF) plans to hold an exhibition of Persian carpets in early September.
 
The carpets have been selected from the storehouse of IAF, the director of the IAF galleries, Jamshid Haqshenas, told the Persian service of MNA on Saturday.
 
 
Lanford Wilson’s plays appear in Persian
 
TEHRAN – Four plays by the American playwright Lanford Wilson (1937–2011) have recently been published in Persian.
 
The plays are “Ludlow Fair”, “Wandering”, “Home Free!” and “The Madness of Lady Bright”, which have been translated into Persian by Moin Mohebalian.
 
The books were published by Zolal Publications.
 
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Documentarian makes film on Persian carpet of Gion Matsuri

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TEHRAN – An Iranian director has completed the shooting of a documentary on an exquisite Persian carpet, which, among others, is displayed annually during Gion Matsuri, a traditional festival that is held in Kyoto, Japan in July.
 
The carpet was presented by the Safavid dynasty (1501–1736) to the Japanese court.  
 
The documentary entitled “In the Dust of History” was directed by Masumeh Nurmohammadi in the Japanese city of Kyoto and the Iranian cities of Tehran and Isfahan, Iran’s Documentary and Experimental Film Center (DEFC) announced in a press release on Sunday.
 
The carpet is a symbol of power and beauty in the parade, Nurmohammadi said in the press release.
 
The documentary explores the place of Persian carpets during the Safavid era as well as the relationship between the two countries.
 
The documentary, which has been produced by the DEFC, is currently being edited for screening.
 
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77-year-old Nanny Hassan hangs paintings at Tehran gallery

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TEHRAN -- An exhibition of paintings by self-taught artist Monavvar Ramezani known as Nanny Hassan is underway at Tehran’s Shirin Gallery.
 
This is the fourth exhibit by Nanny Hassan over the past two years, her son Hassan Rajabi told the Persian service of ISNA on Sunday.
 
“My mother began to paint in 2008, and when I saw her interest I introduced her to several other materials and now she is working with different media,” he said.
 
The 77-year-old Nanny Hassan was born in Sohrevard in Zanjan Province and lives in Khodabandeh, a small town near Zanjan.
 
“My mom used to weave carpets and draw carpet designs, but found interest in paintings over the past few years. Her paintings are rooted in the folktales and traditional rituals of the region”, he explained.
 
“She also used to make dyes for her carpets and that is why she is experienced in colors and knows the world of colors very well,” he added.
 
Four years ago, I decided to display her works. Her first exhibit was held at the Iranian Artists Forum, her second exhibit was in Los Angeles, her third in Seyhun Gallery and this is her fourth, he added.
 
A collection of 34 paintings in large sizes are on show in the exhibit, which opened on Friday, and will be running until August 6 in the gallery located at No. 9, 18th St. in the Velenjak neighborhood.
 
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Photo exhibit highlights ceremonies for Iranian presidential inaugurations

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TEHRAN -- An exhibition of photos displaying official ceremonies held for the inauguration of Iranian presidents opened at the National Library and Archives of Iran on Sunday.
 
The photos focus on the presidential oath of office at the Majlis, their endorsements by the Founder of the Islamic Republic, Imam Khomeini and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and several other ceremonies.
 
A collection of relevant documents are also on display at the exhibition, which runs until August 9.
 
Seven presidents have ruled Iran since the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
 
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Iranian institute to send Spanish translations of children’s books to Uruguayan fair

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TEHRAN – An Iranian institute plans to send the Spanish translations of 44 Persian children’s books to the 37th Montevideo International Book Fair, which will be held in Uruguay from October 1 to 12.
 
The book collection selected for the fair by Iran’s El Faro Children and Young Adults Group.
 
The decision was made during a meeting with the officials of the fair, Managing Director of El Faro Farhad Fallah told the Persian service of MNA on Monday.
 
Books by Iranian children’s writers including Mehdi Shojaii, Mostaf Rahmandust, Anahita Teyurian, Mehdi Hajvani, Mehdi Rahimi and Zohreh Parirokh are among the selected books.
 
The books have been translated into Spanish by El Faro in collaboration with Iran’s Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (IIDCYA).
 
El Faro group has been established by Fundación Cultural Oriente (Oriental Cultural Foundation) in the central Iranian city of Qom.
 
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“Some Kind of Love Story” on stage at Tehran theater

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TEHRAN – The Iranian director Masud Tarverdi is staging Arthur Miller’s “Some Kind of Love Story” at the Khosro Se-Noqteh Theater in Tehran. 
 
“The play depicts some stages of the marital life of Miller and Marilyn Monroe,” Tarverdi told the Persian service of MNA.
 
Nasim Afsharpur and Masud Tarverdi star in the two-person play, which will go on stage until September 5.
 
The play, a one-act play by the American playwright Arthur Miller, is about a hard-boiled Irish detective and a woman (who also is schizophrenic) who holds the key to this criminal case he has been working on – and obsessing over – for five years.
 
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Art news in brief

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Jean Michel Jarre to perform on Kish Island
 
TEHRAN – French composer and performer Jean Michel Jarre has been invited to perform during the Kish Summer Festival, which will be held on the Persian Gulf island from August 6 to September 22.
 
He will reprise the music his father Maurice Jarre composed for “The Message” (1977), Moustapha Akkad’s epic about the birth of Islam, the director of the Music Office of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Piruz Arjmand, said in a press conference on Monday.
 
 
Tehran video festival receives almost 200 foreign submissions 
 
TEHRAN – Filmmakers from 44 countries have submitted 190 films to the 2nd Tehran International Video Film Festival -- Jasmine, which will be held from August 23 to 28.
 
Most of the submissions are from the U.S., Brazil, Georgia, Austria, Armenia, Mongolia and Slovakia.
 
 
Tehran center to host photo exhibition on martial arts 
 
TEHRAN – Tehran’s Bahman Cultural Center will host an exhibition of photos on martial arts from August 22 to September 5.
 
The exhibition will be organized with the help of Iran’s Red Dragon Wushu Kung-Fu Academy.
 
 
Classic cars coming to Sadabad complex
 
TEHRAN – An exhibition of classic cars will open at the Sadabad Cultural Historical Complex today.
 
The showcase, which has been organized by Iran’s Touring and Automobile Club, runs until August 10.
 
A collection of 80 classic cars, which belong to the Sadabad Palace Museum and private collectors, will be put on display at the exhibit.
 
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Iran, Kyrgyzstan to translate national epics Shahnameh and Manas

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TEHRAN -- Iran’s Alhoda International Publications and the National Commission on the State Language of Kyrgyzstan have agreed to translate and publish Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh and Manas, the traditional epic poem of the Kyrgyz people.
 
The decision was made during the meeting the Director of Alhoda Hamidreza Shahabadi and officials from the commission recently had in Kyrgyzstan, the Persian service of MNA reported on Monday.
 
Based on the agreement, a selection from Manas will be translated into Persian and a selection from Shahnameh will be translated into the Kyrgyz language, Shahabadi said.
 
The process of translations will take about a year, and both books are to be published by Alhoda Publications, he added.
 
“Manas and Shahnameh both refer to mystic epics, which is the major point behind the motivation to translate the books,” he added.
 
Completed in 1010, the Shahnameh is a poem of nearly 60,000 verses. Ferdowsi versified and updated the story of Iran to the downfall of the Sassanid Empire (mid-7th century).
 
Composed and sung entirely in oral form by various singers throughout the centuries, Manas is regarded as the epitome of oral creativity.
 
 
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Cultural program to highlight conquest of Tehran by constitutional revolutionaries

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TEHRAN -- The conquest of Tehran by the constitutional revolutionaries in July 1909 will be commemorated during a cultural program in Tehran tomorrow.
 
The unveiling of a book entitled “The Conquest of Tehran” is part of a program that will begin at the Niavaran Cultural and Historical Complex at 5 p.m., author Ardeshir Salehpur said in a press conference on Sunday.
 
The program also includes a naqqali performance, during which two naqqals will narrate the story of the conquest of Tehran.
 
In addition, a painting entitled “The Conquest of Tehran”, which is on display at the Sahebqaranieh Palace of the Niavaran complex will be reintroduced during the program.
 
The painting, which had been created by an unknown artist in 1909, shows the revolutionaries and two of their leaders, Sardar As’ad Bakhtiari and Mirza Mohammad-Vali Khan Tonekaboni, in front of the National Majlis in Tehran.
 
Scenes from the revolutionaries’ battles in other Iranian cities have also been illustrated in the painting.
 
Other parts of the program include a film screening and a musical performance.
 
“The conquest of Tehran was the climax of the Constitutional Revolution, and Niavaran is the best place to host the program about this historical event because the Niavaran Palace was the royal court of the Qajar king Ahmad Shah, the first king who ruled Iran following the victory of the Constitutional Revolution,” Salehpur said.
 
Mozaffar ad-Din Shah (reigned 1896–1907), a weak and incompetent Qajar king, was forced in 1906 to grant a constitution that called for some curtailment of monarchial power. With the aid of Russia, his son Mohammad-Ali Shah (reigned 1907–09) attempted to rescind the constitution and abolish parliamentary government.
 
The attempt provoked uprisings in Tabriz, Rasht and several other Iranian cities. The constitutional revolutionaries headed for Tehran to conquer it. Consequently, Mohammad-Ali Shah was deposed in 1909, and the throne was taken by his son Ahmad Shah. 
 
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