NCRI – Leading members of the European Parliament have praised the life and work of famous Iranian painter Bahram Alivandi at a new exhibition of his work at the EU parliament in Brussels.
Alivandi died last year after fleeing the regime in 1983 to live in exile in Vienna, where he was an active campaigner for democracy and freedom of expression and thought in Iran.
His widow Nahid has now brought his modernist works interwoven with the themes of Persian mythology to the posthumous show in Brussels.
Ryszard Czarnecki, Member of European Parliament from Poland said in his opening speech in the exhibition: “This is one of the most important exhibitions in European Parliament in recent years. Bahram Alivandi, to me is a hero who will go down in the history of Iran for many generations to come.”
Struan Stevenson MEP, the chairman of the parliament’s Friends of a Free Iran group, said in a speech at the exhibition: “Bahram Alivandi was not only a great painter, he was also a great patriot. He hated the brutal repression and censorship of the mullahs’ fascist regime and after a brief period of imprisonment escaped to Vienna in 1983, where he remained until his death last year.
“He was an active member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and through his work, fought for freedom of expression and freedom of thought for the Iranian people.”
Mr Stevenson – also President of the European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations with Iraq – said Mr Alivandi’s two sons were now in Camps Liberty and Ashraf in Iraq, adding: “He wanted very much to visit them during his last few years, but was cruelly prevented from doing so by the Iraqi government.
“This exhibition, brought here from Vienna by Mr Alivandi’s widow Nahid, is a tribute to his life of devotion to freedom and democracy. It is a tribute to the bravery of his two sons and to the 3,200 people of the Iranian resistance who are incarcerated in appalling conditions in those camps in Iraq. It is also a tribute to the NCRI under the leadership of Mrs Maryam Rajavi and their struggle to bring freedom and democracy to Iran.
“He was a great painter in exile and we all live for the day when his exile will end and his great works of art will be restored to their rightful place in the museums and galleries of a free Iran.”
Dr. Alejo Vidal-Quadras, Vice-President of the European Parliament, then added: “This is in honour of a great man… who was not just a brilliant artist and painter. He was also a man who said no to dictatorships. He was against the Shah’s dictatorship and then he became active against the mullahs.
“Experience has shown that with Islamic fundamentalism, we can not have democracy. The people of Iran, if they have a chance, they would overthrow the Ayatollahs. The appeasement policy towards dictatorships is a failure. If that happens, that would be the best way to remember Alivandi in a future democratic Iran, because that was his goal and dream to see his country free. We promise to fight for a free Iran.”
MEP Ryszard Czarnecki speaking at the exhibition (Copyright: “ECR Group in European Parliament”)
MEP Struan Stevenson speaking at the exhibition
EP Vice-President Dr. Alejo Vidal-quadras speaking at the exhibition
Stephen Hughes, First Vice President of the Socialists and Democrats group in European Parliament
Samples of Alivandi’s humanism and artistic expressions
