Saturday, July 20, 2013

New pics: Tehran Book Garden, under construction

Latest phase of development for Tehran Book Garden being constructed at Abbas Abad Hills

Wide angle view of enormous development dedicated to education and culture. Buildings situated in the northern and southern parts of the complex will be used for exhibition, while buildings located in the center will be devoted to auditorium, restaurant, temporary exhibition, office space, kitchen, facilities room, warehouse and parking. [Source: Kayson-ir]

Exteriors sides primed for landscaping, while rebar mat is placed for concrete embankment

Interior detail. 35,000 square meters of the garden will be allocated to book fairs and stores with about one-fourth of this area allocated for children's book needs. {Source: ibna.ir]

Interior detail, stairway adjoining floors

Artist's rendering of completed Tehran Book Garden complex

Artist's rendering of one building's entrance

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I wonder what these pictures of bricks and mortarr convey? We see increasingly use of half finished buildings and structure in this blog and it appears to me that objectivity and serious discussion is lost. It is good to have pluralistic blog authors from advocates of current Iranian regime is OK (M.Pirouz) to rejectionists that see a conspiracy theory behind every news related to Iran by Iranian regime (That Fazeli guy). Sounds like Nader Uskowi is the only level headed blogger in this form who enganges his mind before engaging the keyboard!

Back to these pictures, the only message they convey (giving the irrelevance of building the so called book garden in a country that people can hardly afford to buy local books let alone foreign ones) is the money siphoned into these project by gangs of real estate thugs who exploit the government funding by buying the materials at preferential exchange rates and charging the regime with open market costs. The whole country is littered with these half finished buildings and I am talking through experience as I was there couple of months ago. Now I am sure the relevant blogger is going to draw parallel with what happened in US 80 years ago and – well that is kind of OK for Iran. Like saying cause death penalty is current in US so it is OK everywhere else.

My point being that either these pictures are a form of escapism from the harsh reality of life in Iran (to project an image of wealth and prosperity) or the blogger assumes that people will be fooled by these images. There are of course readers who either passionately support the regime and all it does or they are anti-regime at all cost.

Sadly this is the norm. When I mentioned in the past that us Iranians are culturally backward (though it hurts our pride saying so), I mean this. There is no shade of grey for us. Everything is binary. Either black or white. I believe the current administration in Iran have done some good and they have also done a lot of bad. So everything has to be judged on its own merit. Guilt by association is not right. You cannot say just someone criticising a matter is pro or anti regime.

If this is indeed the case, then sadly we have a long way to go to have democratic institutions in Iran. This also proves that you can change regime overnight, however, it will take years to change peoples thinking. Democracy starts with care and respect for others thinking “and agree to disagree with some on certain matters”. This culture is a long way to go in Iran.


Anonymous said...

to the above comment. Please seek a doctor. Why did you write such a long and unrelated comment about a book center?

Anonymous said...

Clamhead. It is not just a book center. It is about everything on the matter of buildings in this forum. As I stated before people like you should engage the brain before engaging the keyboard. Never mind the doctor. Go and see a vet!

Anonymous said...

This is good, especially the area allocated for children's book needs. Children benefit from books and being encouraged to read.

Anonymous said...

So Iran has the money to build fancy libraries but not the GDP per capita to own books??

Anonymous said...

see a doctor.

Anonymous said...

@Anon 10:19.
Sure guy, whatever you say. I guess these packed Book fairs are just so people can come and look at all the books they cant afford because of their GDP.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7vrHh3-M6g

Or this one from 2 years ago. Just ask yourself one question. Why have 12 day book fairs if none of the book sellers there will sell any books? And why are so many people there perusing books.
Whats the point of all these methers there with their kids, if when the kids ask, "mommy can I get this?", the response will be " no my child our GDP isnt high enough for me to buy you this book"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WW0bYjXQGm0

But thats okay keep deluding yourself with caricatures of what you imagine Iran to be like, while avoiding the overcrowded underfunded schools where you are like

Australia:.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/nov/27/christopher-pyne-equity-schools

USA