Akbar Keshavarz-Shirazi, the in-house photographer of the father of the Islamic Republic Imam Khomeini, was honored in a ceremony in Rey county, southern Tehran.
Attended by several high-ranking officials including head of the Culture and Islamic Guidance Office, and the Tehran governor’s deputy, the event was opened with a message from Hassan Khomeini, Imam Khomeini’s grandson, Honaronline reported.
Hassan Khomeini hailed Shirazi and his long-time career. A part of his message reads, ‘’the merits of art and its role in promoting civilization is hidden to no one and among these, man-made art forms, and especially photography demand more attention.”
Akbar Keshavarz-Shirazi was born in 1962 and began photography – among other pursuits and has so far published more than 350 million photos of late Imam Khomeini and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as well as other religious and artistic personalities. Shirazi spent 81 months fighting in the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war and in 2001 was chosen as an exemplary war veteran. He began to exclusively photograph Imam Khomeini in 1979 and since then has participated in several photo exhibitions.
Shirazi has published 15 books and has used his photographs in several others. He has received numerous honors from different religious and cultural figures as well as 10 honorary doctorates from various universities.
