Graffiti in Iran
During the last few years, Tehran Municipality has been drawing graffiti (more properly named "murals") in order to beautify the city.
Graffiti is also a way to express political and cultural opinions of marginalized and excluded groups have no serious access to the official propaganda facilities.
There is a hidden link between graffiti and other elements of the Iranian youth lifestyle (especially the underground music) in major cities (Tehran, Karaj, Mashhad, and Shiraz).
The Iranian new graffiti creators are young people who do not act in line with the official culture, but sometimes conflict with it and even find fun in such an experience.
- Notable point, Iranian authorities sentenced filmmaker Keywan Karimi to one year in prison and 223 lashes after finding him guilty of "insulting sanctities."
Documentary is based on showing known Iranian artists' point of view, artworks and Idealism and the fact all the message they want to spread is about peace, love, children and women rights.
In this short film, the members of the Tehran Ratz discuss their efforts to use graffiti to challenge the legitimacy of the Iranian regime and to change international assumptions about their country’s people.
Their graffiti addresses issues of peace, war, love, hate, hope, despair, children, society and Iranian culture.
They have held numerous exhibitions worldwide and their unofficial street artworks have appeared in Iran and throughout Europe, South America and the United States.
“Made in Iran”, held at the Openhouse Gallery in New York City, featured their new works and site-specific installations.
Since then, Icy & Sot have been based in New York City – which provides a better platform for their creative endeavors and greater freedom of movement – leaving behind a rich underground street art scene in Iran.
Censorship is harsh and Black Hand is compelled to keep his anonymity, as he explains to The Guardian "I hide my identity for security reasons.
In April 2014, the artist organized an exhibition of his own work that took place in an abandoned house in central Tehran which was under the protection of the Historical Preservation Society for its unique architecture, but which the authorities had decided to demolish anyway.
An example of his art (shown in gallery), which went viral on social media, is a mural of a woman holding up a bottle of dishwashing liquid as if it were a sports cup.
Rather than being influenced by the mainstream graffiti styles coming in from the West, he takes inspiration from traditional Iranian art forms such as calligraphy (khattati or khoshnevesi) and miniature painting (negargari).
