Past Cosmopolitanism, Possible Future Détente

This presentation sheds light on the effects of the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art’s creation in 1970, arguably the first museum of contemporary art in South Asia and the Middle East. The Museum’s construction and collection were funded by the national oil company and supported by the royal family. I argue that the international collection, comprised of late modern and contemporary artworks, helped to overcome the biases against contemporary art and to establish the perception of a cosmopolitan cultural center in Iran prior to the 1979 Islamic Revolution.