For the first time in Georgia, The Art Institute of Atlanta illustrates Iranian society through a Iran-specific photo exhibit.

The Iran Beyond Politics exhibit is currently on display in the Janet Day Gallery through November 13th, 2016.

Photos from various photographers from Iran will give the public visuals of natural, cultural, and anthropogenic perspectives on Iran.

“I finally made a decision to go beyond trying to tell people about Iran one person at a time,” Maryam Ghadiri, curator of the exhibit says.

“This exhibition is a celebration: I would like to take you on a journey through my motherland; a land full of colors and beauty, full of wonderful people, traditions, food, history, landscapes, arts, and crafts.  I am taking you to a space beyond media and politics, to a warm and joyful place, so that you can see the real story for yourself. I want you to experience a piece of the land where Cyrus the Great ruled over one of the most religiously tolerant of ancient societies in the sixth century BC, where poets like Hafez and Rumi were born and tales of Sheherzad are told…Where hillsides are carpeted with spring flowers and roads are winding into the mountains.  I want to introduce you to the motherland I carry in my heart.”

The exhibit, a collaboration an Iranian photography journal: Sarzamin Man (Persian: My Motherland), and Purdue University, is meant to “shed light on a land that is usually only seen in the eyes of politics, leaving its other aspects unheard, unseen, and unknown”.

This exhibit is free and open to the public.

For more information visit Art Institute of Atlanta, or call 770.394.8300.

* On October 11, Art Institute of Atlanta will host a lecture by Dr. Hossein Sammie from Emory University that will focus on Iran, its people and culture. The lecture will run from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m..