Promoter of Iranian Culture and the Arts
Farah Pahlavi’s contribution to Iranian culture went far beyond mere patronage. As a former architecture student trained in Paris, she had a deep and personal interest in aesthetics, history, and the visual arts. She made it a mission to preserve, modernize, and internationalize Iranian cultural institutions.
Under her direction, several historical sites were restored and repurposed. One such example was Ferdows Garden in Tehran, which was transformed into a cultural and cinematic center. She also founded or significantly expanded a number of museums, including the Iranian Carpet Museum, which celebrated Iran’s ancient and globally renowned art of carpet weaving, and the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, which was among the most significant modern art museums in the Middle East. The latter housed works by Iranian as well as Western masters such as Picasso, Warhol, and Rothko.
One of Farah’s most ambitious and controversial projects was her patronage of the Shiraz Arts Festival, held annually in the ancient city of Persepolis. The festival, which ran from 1967 to 1977, showcased avant-garde and traditional performances from artists around the globe, including ballet, modern dance, theater, and classical Persian music. Farah defended the festival as a means to bring global culture to Iranians and to bring Iranian art to the attention of the world. As she explained to Reza Ghotbi, head of Iran’s National Iranian Radio and Television, “Some can go to Europe and see the latest developments in world art. But not everyone can, and we want to give everyone this opportunity by holding our own festival… The new generation of Iranians and all the people of the world should know our culture and art.”