DON'T MISS TEHRAN'S STREET ART
Tehran's highway flyovers, high brick walls, and the jumble of concrete housing complexes and towers win no awards for visual appeal. However, those same structures do provide enormous canvases for striking, colorful, and highly imaginative street art. Such public daubings date back to the early years of the Iranian Revolution and the anti-West propaganda public art, such as the wall fronting the US Den of Espionage and the iconic Stars & Stripes mural (Karim Khan-e Zand Blvd, Meydan-e Valiasr) that towers over Karim Khan Zand Blvd in central Tehran.

Graffiti Jomhoory st Tehran

There are countless stories-tall portraits of Ayatollah Khomeini and of current Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. In the wake of the Iran-Iraq War, favorite subjects also include that conflict's many martyrs.

In recent years, Mayor's administration has stepped up its program of beautifying Tehran by handing out gallons of paint to approved muralists The surreal Magritte-like murals are typically whimsical, featuring figures walking across ceilings, twisting giant bolts, or cycling or driving through the sky. Of course, there's also an underground army of non-approved street artists turning out works that tackle social and political issues and which are often quickly blanked out by the authorities.
Among them is Black Hand, who is often labeled as Iran's Banksy, and the Tabriz-born brothers and stencil artists Icy & Sot now based in New York City.