The municipality removed the independent budget of the House of Iranian Artists

Theater News Base: The House of Iranian Artists was established in February 1999 by Behrouz Gharibpour with the reconstruction of a building from the first Pahlavi period, which in those days was nothing more than a semi-abandoned military center, with the support of the Tehran Municipality and the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. Until Majid Rajabi, the architect passed in this house in March, 1400, As Gharibpour says It can be a book with more than several thousand pages, including the services that this independent cultural institution has provided to the citizens of Tehran and the residents of Iran.

The independent cultural institution mentioned in its statute. The building provided by the Tehran Municipality belongs to this house as long as the House of Iranian Artists is active, its director is elected by the members of its Supreme Council, and the Tehran Municipality and the Ministry of Culture and Islamic guidance is obliged to help it in a supportive and not supervisory position.

But what has happened that the municipality of Tehran, since the administration of Alireza Zakani, in August 1400, has built a building to ignore the house of Iranian artists? Has he not fulfilled his legal duty to nominate a person as a representative of the municipality in the Supreme Council of the House of Iranian Artists, and with the end of the work of Engineer Mostafa Kazemi as a former representative, has he practically cut off communication between the members of the Supreme Council of this house? What has happened that has stepped on the lifeblood of the House of Iranian Artists and refused to finance it? And even worse, as Mohammad Javad Haghshenas, a former member of the Tehran City Council and head of its cultural and social commission, says, the budget line of the House of Iranian Artists and its twelve trade unions has been removed from the Tehran municipality’s budget. Has replaced it?

House of Iranian Artists; A precious gem not only in Tehran and Iran but also in West Asia

Mohammad Javad Haghshenas begins his speech on this subject: “If you agree, I will first provide an overview of the situation and situation of the House of Iranian Artists, and then we will come to the point of what this house is in now.”

This former member of the Tehran City Council and the head of its cultural and social commission, continued: “The House of Iranian Artists has been operating in Tehran for nearly 23 years with effective activities in the cultural and artistic fields. As you know, this complex has a central building and next to it, there are other units such as Iranshahr Theater, and at the same time, the building area also contains a collection of works by renowned artists in the field of visual arts, and this combination can be called “gardens”. “It is said in the central context of Tehran that it has been offered to the citizens of Tehran.”

“This complex used to be a military barracks,” he added. The garrison, which was acquired by the city 24 years ago under an agreement between the city administration of the time and the army, paid for the price of the region and its day. It took several years for the preparation to take place properly, because in any case, the transformation of a barracks, a military complex into a complex that wants to function for the general public, had its difficulties and required focused thinking and careful and appropriate mental plans. “It happened.”

The university lecturer further explained: “At the same time, while these events were taking place, the management of the Iranian Artists’ House was also discussed; How to manage this collection and whether it will be given to the Cultural and Artistic Organization of Tehran Municipality, like tens or maybe hundreds of collections that we know today as a cultural center or house of culture? “Should it be entrusted to the socio-cultural deputy or other deputies such as the deputy for urban planning, or should its affairs be transferred to other units of the Tehran municipality, such as the municipalities of the regions?”

Haghshenas added: “Finally, a special mechanism was defined to manage the affairs of the House of Iranian Artists; The Board of Trustees was formed and independent statutes were written so as not to be influenced by executive policies or functions with a short-term view of mayors and city councils, but to become a luxurious collection with an independent view that is a place for artists of different classes and branches of art. “Be.”

He stated: “It was with this approach that we watched the formation of specialized associations in the House of Iranian Artists; Nine specialized art associations were formed there, some of which included several thousand members; Calligraphers Association, Photographers Association, Graphic Designers Association, Painters Association, Poets Association, Illustrators Association, Pottery and Ceramics Artists Association, Sculptors Association and Architects and Urban Planners Consulting Engineers Association, as well as members of Theater House, Music House and Cinema House. They also became members of the House of Artists so that eventually some of them could be elected as representatives, form the Supreme Assembly of the House of Iranian Artists, and finally elect a board of directors and elect an individual board of directors as managing director. “According to the rule, two people were selected in each term and introduced to the Tehran municipality as candidates for the board of directors, and the mayor eventually issued a managing director’s order for one of them.”

Haghshenas continued: “It is appropriate to remember the first person who was elected as the managing director of the House of Iranian Artists; Behrouz Gharibpour, a prominent figure in the field of theater art, whose services and works in the field of cultural management, including the transformation of the slaughterhouse into the Bahman Cultural Center, are undeniable. “He himself, who participated in the reconstruction of the complex and the transformation of the military barracks into a cultural and artistic place and played an important role, was elected as the first managing director of the Iranian Artists’ House.”

He added: “The mentioned process for selecting the CEO continued until 2015. Until the days when Mr. Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, the then mayor, proposed Mr. Majid Rajabi, the architect, as a person with an effective background in macro-artistic and cultural management, as the managing director of the House of Iranian Artists. You are aware that the name of Rajabi, the architect, accompanied the name of the “Fatah Narrative” collection for many years, and the management of the Radio and Television Organization was also part of his work record. His career has shown that he is a director of a peripheral society in which he knows both the language of artists and institutional policies such as television, with all his rigors, and can draw close links between the two areas, which are difficult to bring closer. He had valuable experience in this field and wherever he worked, he was acquainted with artists in the field of cinema, theater, radio and television, etc., as well as because of the trust he had in the government. “He was brilliant and finally, during Mr. Qalibaf’s term, he took over the management of the Iranian Artists’ House as the managing director.”

Haghshenas added: “When we attended the fifth council and specifically its cultural commission, despite the end of their term of office, our request was that their management continue, given the successful experience they had at the House of Iranian Artists, and given There are many red lines that are unfortunately against the rules and are very difficult to read. Someone who can communicate with the 9 guild associations of this house and the three guilds of the theater house, the cinema house and the music house, as well as with “The management body.”

He continued: “During the four years of the Fifth Council, one of our main concerns was to defend and support the independence of the artists’ unions so that they could stand on their own two feet and continue their work due to their strong base among artists. Increase their budget and be fair in allocating the budget so that it leads to the survival of these associations and a kind of relationship between the city and these associations and the presence of artists in the urban space through the activities they perform in the field. Theater, whether in the field of cinema, or in the field of music, whether in the field of visual arts, or poetry, literature, sculpture, etc., should be guaranteed and facilitated. “Fortunately, this approach continued, and the House of Iranian Artists has stood alone in all these years, especially during the Corona, when we usually saw the closure of cultural and artistic activities, and has built many other centers as well.”

Comparing Iranshahr Artists House and Iranshahr Complex with complexes such as Shahr Theater, Haghshenas said: “Compare Iranshahr Complex with Shahr Theater as a government center to see that Iranshahr has been one of the most important theater centers in the country all these years or See its special forums, which in my opinion, not only in Iran but also in West Asia, such a collection is not visible in terms of function and activity. Do not forget that centers such as UNESCO and other major art centers in the world know this collection by name and specifications, and it has been a place where great artists with different tendencies have been present all these years without any worries and concerns, while willingly They did not attend many similar centers and recognized the House of Iranian Artists as their home. We have witnessed many times large exhibitions in the field of photography, graphics, painting, sculpture, etc. in the House of Iranian Artists. “We have witnessed many times that after the death of famous and veteran artists, the House of Iranian Artists has been chosen as a place to expel his body to the Eternal House, and all of this shows the position of these centers.”

At the end of this part of his speech, he explained: “This center has not only been active for the past 24 years, but has also affected the entire surrounding area. “You will see the space of Iranshahr Street and its side streets to find out how many cafes, museums, cafes, galleries and centers for theatrical and artistic works have been formed there, which are mainly influenced by the atmosphere of the House of Iranian Artists.”

Warning to Tehran City Council and Mayor; What you do with the House of Iranian Artists is disgusting

Haghshenas continued: “We expected the friends of the sixth city council to appreciate and support this collection, but unfortunately we saw that even the budget approved by the fifth city council was not allocated to the House of Iranian Artists and to the trade unions.” “The theater, music and cinema house, which has built a total of 12 subdivisions of the House of Iranian Artists, was delayed and the valuable efforts that had been made were wasted.”

“Even in this year’s proposed budget, we see the elimination of all specific budget lines and the definition of a public line entitled ‘Assistance to Cultural and Religious Centers’, which is becoming opaque and unaccountable against al-Qaeda,” he said. Previously, there may have been about 40 to 50 rows of dedicated budgets, and it was quite clear that, for example, this amount would help a theater, a music house, a cinema house or a trade union affiliated with the Iranian Artists’ House, but all of this was removed. In fact, they have defined it as “helping cultural and religious centers” that can leave the city free to support areas in a non-transparent way, and the help needed by the subdivisions of the Iranian Artists’ House, which has been struggling all these years. “Many have struggled and are being held back despite their strict policies.”

He continued: “I address the city council and ask why are you doing this ?! Why do this with one of the collections that can be a worthy and available center in the global and international dimension? The center is available in a global and international dimension, and if you look at the collection of work that has been done in it, if you look at its previous activities, you will see how many ambassadors and cultural advisors have visited it and sent clear and very valuable messages. “In particular, they have communicated to the world and shown how a proper and beautiful approach resulting from urban management with cultural and artistic fields can be displayed.”

Haghshenas said in the end: “I am sorry to see what is being done to the house of Iranian artists today, and the budget that was allocated to it is not approved in a silent way, and even this budget is removed in an inappropriate move. Towards non-transparency, and in general, it is done in such a way that even experienced figures such as Rajabi, an architect with nearly 20 years of brilliant experience in the cultural and artistic fields, an approach that is apparently close to the approach of friends in the city council due to totalitarianism and grammatical view. Culture and art are eliminated and the circle of insiders and outsiders is highlighted so much that they do not accept and recognize him within insiders. This is unfortunate everywhere, and I warn the city administration that this approach is not only in the interest of the city, but also in the interest of the city administration, and will jeopardize the connection that this collection has been able to establish with artists over the years. »