At Tirgan 2017 a large poster (approximately 3.5 m x 3.5 m) of the Freedom Sculpture will be installed and on display with the intention to raise awareness about the art piece and the message it carries, which is honouring the shared humanitarian ideals of Cyrus the Great and the Founding Fathers of America.
Designed by award-winning architect and artist Cecil Balmond O.B.E., the Freedom Sculpture is a large-scale contemporary interpretation of the 2,500-year-old Cyrus Cylinder1, an ancient Persian artifact widely considered to be the first declaration of human rights. The Freedom Sculpture is an historic gift to the City of Los Angeles symbolizing freedom, multicultural coexistence, and respect for diversity for all.
With over a million supporters, from all across America and over 50 countries around the world, the Freedom Sculpture has become the most widely crowd-supported monumental gift in U.S. History. It stands like a “Statue of Liberty for the West Coast”, in the heart of Los Angeles.
Four years in the making, the Freedom Sculpture has been an initiative led by the Farhang Foundation and the Iranian-American community in Los Angeles. For more information on the Freedom Sculpture please refer to: http://www.freedomsculpture.org/about/145-the-freedom-sculpture
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- The Cyrus Cylinder, widely known as the first declaration of human rights, recounts Cyrus the Great of Persia’s conquest of Babylon some 2,500 years ago. It was a proclamation that granted individual and religious freedoms and rights to all who lived under his rule. An image of the Cyrus Cylinder hangs in the halls of the United Nations as a reminder of the importance of these universal values to all humanity.
