TEHRAN AFTER 1979
Turning inward, Tehran and Iran became paradoxically both less and
more global after 1979. As the gates to the West closed, pre-Islamic imag-
ery was stripped from public monuments and replaced by the faces and
words of Islamic leaders. Hundreds of new mosques sprang up as reli-
gious, community, and economic centers. If huge modern edifices, a ra-
tional urban grid, and grandiose public squares were the legacies of Reza
and Muhammed Reza Shah, (Figure 12) then the gaudy shrine of Imam
Khomeini near Tehran’s rapidly expanding cemetery must be a signal ar-
chitectural trace of the first two decades of Islamic rule. Meanwhile, the
problem of Tehran’s overcrowding was answered by shanty towns and high rises that have created a newly modern sil-
houette. (Figure 13) Pollution, traffic congestion, shortages of water, and excesses of sewage have continued, as has the
binary class geography of the city.
Tehran remains a lively and complex reality, full of conflict and vitality
beneath a bleak garb. (Figure 14) A century of turmoil and both forced
modernization and de-modernization have perhaps enabled a particular
dynamic. As reflected in a somewhat phantasmagoric architecture, the de-
fensive and creatively eclectic dualism of Iran’s political leaders has led to
a habitual split, an experience half “modern” and half “looking backward”
— one hand appropriates from around the globe while the other ideologi-
cally rejects all of it. The irony, perhaps, is that Tehran, showcasing a new
political order, now displays an Islamic face while a vibrant cosmopoli-
tanism thrives in a city full of satellite dishes and internet connections that slake the thirst of many Iranians for global
encounters.^55
- After Israel, Iran is reported to be the most “wired” county in the Middle East. Demographically dominant young people,
at least, participate more and more in a world civilization.
Marefat...
Figure 8: Meydan Mashq GateFigure 9: Bank e Melli (National Bank)