Mirza Hamid, the little-known Iranian artist who has spent years creating paintings on the walls of abandoned and neglected buildings, has recently turned his attention to sites damaged during the two recent wars. His latest work has appeared on the walls of Bahman BookCity in Tehran’s Javadieh neighborhood, a cultural center that was damaged during U.S. and Israeli attacks and subsequently forced to suspend its activities.
By painting on the walls of the building, Mirza Hamid seeks to preserve the memory of the center’s cultural role and prevent it from fading into oblivion. His intervention transforms the damaged structure into a site of remembrance, where art becomes a means of bearing witness to what has been lost.
The paintings have been created in an environment where signs of destruction remain clearly visible. Broken windows, damaged walls, and traces of collapse still mark the building, creating a striking contrast between devastation and artistic expression. In this setting, art appears to offer a way of narrating the story of a place that has been profoundly affected by war.
Commenting on the project, Mirza Hamid wrote: “This place had become a cultural gathering spot for the young people of Javadieh and Naziabad, and they loved it. I hope it will soon be rebuilt and brought back to life.”
During its years of operation, Bahman BookCity became one of the best-known cultural centers in southern Tehran, hosting a wide range of book-related and cultural programs for children, teenagers, young adults, and local families. Today, Mirza Hamid’s artwork serves not only as a visual record of destruction but also as a reminder of the center’s cultural significance and of the hope that it may one day be restored and return to the cultural life of the neighborhood.
Tags: Bahman BookCity, Mirza Hamid, War
