Barbad Golshiri & Iran

Barbad Golshiri &

Iran

History • 636: Arab invasion brings start of Islamic rule • 9th century: Emergence of modern Persian language (Farsi) • 1501: With the support of Shia warrior tribes, Shah Ismail I becomes first ruler of Islamic Safavid dynasty; Shia Islam declared state religion. • 1907: Introduction of constitution limits absolute powers of rulers • 1926: Military commander Reza Khan crowned. His oldest son, Mohammed, is proclaimed Crown Prince.

History • 1935: Formerly known as Persia, Iran is adopted as the country's official name • 1941: The Shah's pro-Axis allegiance in World War II leads to the deposition of the Shah in favor of his son • 1950: Mohammad Mossadeq becomes prime minister after the assassination of Ali Razmara • 1951: Parliament votes to nationalize the oil industry. A power struggle between the Shah and Prime Minister Mossadeq ensues and the Shah flees the country in August 1953. • 1953: Mossadeq is overthrown in a coup engineered by British and American intelligence services. The Shah returns.

History • 1963: The Shah embarks on a campaign to modernize and westernize the country • 1978: The Shah's policies alienate the clergy and his authoritarian rule leads to riots, strikes and mass demonstrations. Martial law is imposed.

History • 1979 (January 16th): Shah and family forced into exile • 1979 (February 1st): The Islamic fundamentalist, Ayatollah Khomeini, returns to Iran after 14 years of exile in Iraq and France for opposing the Shah’s regime • 1979 (April): The Islamic Republic of Iran is proclaimed after a referendum.

Government • Iran is a theocratic republic, with a Supreme Leader determining and supervising the general policies • Political parties are relatively new, formed before elections and disbanded soon after • Most conservatives prefer working through political pressure groups

Current Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Economy • Iran’s economy is a mix of central planning, state ownership of oil and large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private ventures • Unemployment and underemployment are high • Educated youth seek jobs outside Iran, causing a “brain drain”

Censorship in Iran • The government has tried to stop political movements among the youth by not allowing students with opposing views to attend universities

Censorship in Iran • Iran is the 4th most censored country in the world • “Non-Islamic” websites are censored by the government • Online journalists are harassed and put in jail

Bio: Barbad Golshiri • Born in 1982, Tehran, Iran • Lives and works in Tehran • 2004 – BA, Painting, The School of Art and Architecture, Azad University, Tehran • Installation art • Conceptual art • Art and Language • Art and Philosophy

Early Influences: A Family of Intellectuals

Barbad’s Golshiri’s Father: Houshang Golshiri, Author

Barbad Golshiri’s Mother: Farzaneh Taheri, Literary Critic

Portrait of the Artist as a One Year Old Child (2005)

What Has Befallen Us, Barbad? (2002)

The Distribution of the Sacred System (2010)