Alberto Gonzalez Casals made the remarks at the opening ceremony of the Latin America Cartoon and Caricature Exhibition at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art (TMoCA) on Thursday, IRNA reported on Friday.

Condemned the Zionist regime’s ongoing bombardment and blockade of the Gaza Strip, he said: “What is happening in Palestine is a crime. While we are here, people are martyred in Palestine and they don’t even have the minimum facilities.”

Hamas launched Operation al-Aqsa Storm into the occupied territories on October 7 in response to intensified crimes by Israeli forces and settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. In response, the Zionist regime waged an all-out war on Gaza, killing more than 8,700 people, about half of them children, and wounding tens of thousands in the tightly besieged enclave.

Casals also said he was honored to be in the exhibition where “we had the chance to have some of the best Latin American artists present.”

Showcasing works from 15 countries in Latin America, the cartoon and caricature exhibition opened November 11 with the presence of art directors and Iranian and foreign artists in Tehran.

Explaining about the background of cooperation with global artists, Masoud Shojaei Tabatabai, the secretary of the exhibition, said: “The history of extensive and continuous interaction with artists of the world, including Latin America, goes back to the 1st Tehran Cartoon Biennial in 1992. During the next three decades, a deep cultural and artistic connection was established between Iran and Latin American countries, which led to the organization of this global event in Tehran.”

Also speaking at the ceremony, the deputy director of the Art Bureau said: “The Latin American artists whose works are displayed at this exhibition are among the best cartoonists and caricaturists in the world.”

“They have, with their delicate art, offered us the most bitter issues in an artistic way,” Seyyed Amir Javid added.

Works by artists from Argentina, Ecuador, Brazil, Honduras, Mexico, Cuba, Chile, Costa Rica, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, and Nicaragua are on display until November 19 at the TMoCA, adjacent to Laleh Park, North Kargar Ave.

The post TMoCA displaying cartoons, caricatures by Latin American artists appeared first on Iran News Daily.

The post Macron Justifies Insulting Cartoons Published in Charlie Hebdo appeared first on Iran News Daily.

According To Iran News, Seyed Massoud Shojaei Tabatabai, Secretary of the International Holocaust Cartoon Competition announced on Thursday the suspicious death of an Iranian cartoonist in Switzerland.

In an interview with Mehr News Agency, he said that Behnam Bahrami was one of the cartoonists who had recently sent a cartoon for the International Holocaust Cartoon Competition and then went to Switzerland to continue his studying.

Bahrami was threatened by terrorist MKO members after he had held an exhibition on the issue of the Holocaust in Geneva, according to Shojaei Tabatabai.

He went on to say that due to the continuation of threats, Bahrami decided to leave Switzerland to Iran but before leaving Switzerland, his parents in Tehran were informed about his death.

Shojaei Tabatabai said that Switzerland’s government suspiciously didn’t allow the return of Bahrami’s body to Iran and also announced the reason of his death ‘unknown’.

Bahrami’s cartoon on Holocaust had had a wide reflection in foreign media, especially in the Israeli regime’s, he added.

Shojaei Tabatabai called on Iranian Foreign Ministry to follow the issue.

The post Suspicious death of Iranian cartoonist in Switzerland appeared first on Iran News Daily.

A total of 730 works from among 4,000 cartoons were submitted to the secretariat of the 11th Tehran International Cartoon Biennial which wrapped up on December 15.

The exhibition’s panel of juries included Kambiz Derambaksh, Javad Alizadeh, Abolfazl Mohtarami, Firouzeh Mozaffari, Rahim Baqqal-Asghari, Masoud Zardakhshouei and Mohammad-Hossein Niroumand.

The names of the winners in the three different categories are as follows:

Thematic Cartoon Section 

Grand Prize: Sajjad Rafei – Iran

First Prize: Toso Borkovic – Serbia

Second Prize: Shahram Rezaei – Iran

Third Prize: Mikhail Zlatkovsky – Russia

Caricature Section 

First Prize: Bruno Hamzagic – Brazil

Second Prize: Amin Torabi – Iran

Third Prize: Aref Niazi – Iran

Free Cartoon Section

First Prize: Mahnaz Yazdani – Iran

Second Prize: Josef Prchal – Spain

Third Prize: Klaus Pitter – Austria

The Grand Prize for the thematic section comprises $8000 with trophy and honorable mention. First Prizes in each section includes $2000, Second Prize $1500, and Third Prize $1000, with trophies and honorable mentions.

The post 11th Tehran Intl. Cartoon Bienneial names winners appeared first on Iran News Daily.

The cartoons have been created by Pantea Vaeznia for the exhibit, which is part of the 1st Persian Speakers in Europe Art Festival, the organizers announced in a press release on Monday.

“This exhibition gives a real insight into women’s status and their rights in modern Iranian society,” said Vaeznia who has worked with Gol Aqa, a Persian satirical magazine, and several Iranian newspapers.

“Despite all the misinformation about Iran from foreign media, Iranian women are active in various cultural, social and political fields,” she stated.

“Iran’s patriarchal society has not only failed to keep women in homes, but also has caused them to strive for greater success,” she added.

“By this exhibition, I intend to change the improper views of Iranian expatriates about women’s status in Iran and convince them to be more realistic,” she noted.

Vaeznia said that her exhibition will familiarize visitors with women’s problems as well with their successes in Iranian society.

The Persiana Media Group is the main organizer of the festival, which will be held from January 13 to 20, 2018. The event is designed to introduce Persian art and culture to the world.

The post Cartoon exhibit to spotlight women’s rights in Iran appeared first on Iran News Daily.