Time Travel Booth: Iran In 1967.

/photo © Mehdi Mahboubian/

The following photos were taken by Mehdi Mahboubian, Iranian scholar, art dealer, collector and lover of Persian culture.  He took them in 1967, on a trip from Tehran to Shiraz.

His son Kourosh Mahboubian explains how his father took these photos because he wanted a record of the sights, people, and way of life he loved so much.  From the kabab man to the bazaris, to the washer woman, he captured everyday scenes in the life of every Iranian.

Mahboubian writes: “At that time, Iranian society had reached a crossroads between the magic of its ancient culture and the forces of modernization. The country was happy and prosperous for a while, though change, for good or bad, would become inevitable.”

//all photos © Mehdi Mahboubian//

You can see more photos and read the full story here.

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Previous Time Travel Booths:

Afghanistan by Paolo Woods

Middle East by Inge Morath

70’s and 80’s Sudan by Abbas Habiballa

Make a wish – Tehran.

I already posted about Loulou d’Aki and her great project Make a wish, presenting Make a wish – Gaza.

Make a wish  is an investigation about the dreams and visions of a selection of 21st century youngsters. The project took place in Istanbul, Gaza, Cairo, Sana’a, Tehran, Jerusalem and Naples.

Today – it’s time to see what young people in Tehran dream about and wish for.

18-year old Sahba Nikraftar from Rashd spends the weekend with her family by the Caspian sea.

Dorna is an art student. She does not feel free in Iran and studies German so that she can eventually continue her life in Berlin.

 

Hoda Zareei from Ekbatan neighborhood in southeastern Tehran studies sculpture at the Academy of Art.

 

16-year old Zahra is a Taekwando championess from Karaj, northwest of Tehran. She started practising the sport when she was 9 and has continued ever since with the support of her family.

 

 

15-year old Cyrus is the only son of renown fashion designer Shade Parand. He lives with his mother in northern Tehran and goes to high school.

 

Bahman Nasifrifar is a metal guitarist without a band and a spiritual Toec believer. He recently tired to emigrate to Sweden but was sent back home and had his passport confiscated by the authorities at his return in Iran. He spends his time with friends, in the mountains or playing his new guitar patiently awaiting the day his passport will be returned to him so that he can try to leave the county one more time.

/all images © Loulou d’Aki/

For more on d’Aki and her projects, go to her official website.

The magical universe of Tehran’s street art(ists).

Mehdi Ghadyanloo is an Iranian street artist. He has been painting murals and deocorating the walls of Tehran for a long time now (quietly, in the night, since it is an illegal activity). He got his MA and decided to show his art, to paint it on the walls – all over Theran. Now – he has painted more than 100 walls in Tehran. His beautiful artwork can be seen on the walls, fences, buildings, playgrounds, and presents topics such as the life cycle, childhood, and old memories of Tehran in a unique and often very colorful way. It’s a great artistic intervention and presence, and I wish to see more walls like this in other cities and countries.

Enjoy.

all photos © Mehdi Ghadyanloo

For more of Mehdi’s artwork, visit Behance.net.

Diversity and Exuberance – Panoramas of Iran.

Mohammad Reza Domiri Ganji is an Iranian photographer whose work I already mentioned here, introducing his mosque photos – well, more – mosque flowers, full of colors and amazing light.

There are some great news – he has a new site, you can check it out here. To get you excited about his work and his new photos, I am posting this random collection of the lovely moments he captured so far. I think it is a beautiful portrayal of Iran in its diversity  – from the amazing Bafgh desert at night to Theran’s towers and carpet repair workshops in Shiraz.

Enjoy.

Bafgh Desert at Night 

Azadi (Shahyad) Tower , Tehran , Iran

Choret Lake , Mazandaran , Iran

Winter in Mazandaran

Eram Garden , Shiraz , Iran

Carpet Repair Workshop, Shiraz, Iran (all photos © Mohammad Reza Domiri Ganji)

For more of Mohammad’s work – visit his website and his facebook page.

Riding the Trans Asia Express.

Every week, the train leaves from Ankara (Turkey) at 10.35am, starting the 2,500 kilometres of transcontinental travel, with its destination being Tehran (Iran). It’s a 60-hour voyage. The arrival at Tehran Central Station is frequently five or six hours late. But, you get to enjoy more time with other passengers, since this slow ride is not for those in a hurry. Here, as Tirstan Rutherford writes – friendships are cemmented with tea and sweets.

all photos © Ayla Hibri/ Brownbook

Read the full story and see all photos on Brownbook.