The Boston Chai Party: Nowruz at the MFA

By AK Rahim

Nowruz festivities are celebrated with much color and cultural pride around the world, whether it is in Iran or in the many cities where celebrants have settled over the years. Boston is no exception.

The YAS Foundation has been sponsoring the annual Persian New Year Festival presented at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) since 2012.

This year’s MFA Nowruz Festival showcased Persian history and culture through its beautiful Haft-seen, designed by YAS Foundation and featured presentations and performances from diverse artists, scholars, calligraphers, and eclectic musical groups.

Dance celebrating birth and renewal by Banafsheh Sayyad

Nowruz performances included a dance celebrating birth and renewal by Banafsheh Sayyad, accompanied by musicians Hamed Nikpay, Pejman Hadadi and Alfredo Caceras; and Persian music by Sayeh Ensemble, with an authentic demonstration of classical and folk dances performed by Sheila Eghbali and local, professional Iranian Dance Artists (IDA).

Musicians Hamed Nikpay, Pejman Hadadi and Alfredo Caceras; and Persian music by Sayeh Ensemble, with an authentic demonstration of classical and folk dances performed by Sheila Eghbali

Visitors viewed works painted by local artist, educator and author, Hengameh Taraz, depicting the ancient city of Persepolis.  To celebrate in a more hands-on fashion, guests were able to practice the craft of Persian calligraphy with guest artist Leili Solatyavari, learning techniques that have been practiced for thousands of years.

Throughout the day celebrating Nowruz, guests were encouraged to delve deeper into the art of Ancient Persia by touring the Ancient Near East Gallery, or joining distinguished scholar and author Reza Zarghamee for a lecture discussing the history of the Iranian people and the quasi-legendary accounts of Persian King Cyrus’s reign.

NooshTube’s co-founder, Sherean Azarmi, attended this year’s event to share our message of Yummy Diplomacy! We at Nooshtube believe that the Boston MFA and the YAS Foundation embody the mission of bridging diverse cultures with Art and Culture where humanity can advance its love around the world.

The NooshTube team would like to personally thank and congratulate our hosts, Boston Museum of Fine Arts and the YAS Foundation for their kind invitation to the Boston MFA Nowruz event.

 

Abdul-Kadar (AK) RahimAbdul-Kadar (AK) Rahim is a marketer and product developer with a healthy obsession with all-things culinary. He is part of NooshTube’s creative team, collaborating on content and marketing. Though brought up on the East Coast, he has a tendency to roam around the world, collecting stories and recipes along the way.