TEHRAN – The 33rd Iranian Youth Visual Arts Festival opened on Sunday at the ancient Taq-e Bostan historical site in Kermanshah, bringing together 173 young artists, 11 workshop instructors and participants from Iraq and Oman under the slogan “Let's Not Muddy the Water.”
The opening ceremony was attended by festival officials, provincial authorities, cultural figures and international guests. Among those present were Reza Sadeqzadeh, the festival secretary; Aydin Mehdizadeh, head of the festival's policy-making council; Jafar Vahedi, executive secretary; and Mozaffar Teymouri, head of the provincial organizing committee.
Kermanshah Governor Manouchehr Habibi, Deputy Governor for Political and Security Affairs Bahram Soleimani, Kermanshah Mayor Bijan Moradi, and other provincial and cultural officials also attended the event.
The ceremony featured speeches by festival organizers and provincial officials, along with a performance of traditional music from Kermanshah. Following a visit to the historic Taq-e Bostan complex, the festival's workshops began at the Kermanshah Girls' Fine Arts High School.
In a message to the festival, Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Seyyed Abbas Salehi emphasized the importance of identifying and supporting young artistic talent across the country, highlighting the role of regional cultural events in promoting cultural justice and decentralizing national programs.
Salehi described Iran's young artists as inheritors of the country's rich cultural and artistic heritage and stressed that providing equal opportunities for…
