MOSCOW (Dispatches) -- A joint Iranian-Russian children’s painting competition has been launched in Astrakhan, with organizers dedicating the event to the memory of 168 students martyred in a terrorist U.S. attack on a school in the city of Minab.
The opening ceremony of the international children’s painting competition was held on Tuesday at the Iranian consulate in Astrakhan. Speakers included Ahmad Heydarian, Iran’s consul general in Astrakhan; a representative of the Astrakhan regional ministry of culture; and the head of the Russian foreign ministry’s office in Astrakhan.
“Art, especially painting, is the shared language of nations,” Heydarian said. He added that children could use art to depict a world full of friendship, peace and coexistence – a world where peace and joy have replaced violence and war.
Speaking to the local television channel Astrakhan 24 on the sidelines of the ceremony, Heydarian said: “In the 21st century, no child should be a victim of military violence and brutality. Unfortunately, in the attacks by America and the Zionist regime, a large number of Iranian children were martyred.”
The consul said the idea for the competition had been developed with Russian colleagues in Astrakhan as a joint cultural program to promote peace and child protection.
The competition is titled “Childhood, Peace and Joy”. It is open to children from Iran and Russia.
Participants must be aged between 12 and 18. The competition will be conducted remotely. Entries are accepted in three disciplines: painting, graphics and composition.
For painting, works may depict still life, portraiture or landscape, created using gouache, watercolor, oil paint, tempera or acrylic.
For composition, categories include still life, landscape composition and narrative composition related to the competition’s theme, using gouache, watercolor or oil paint.
For graphics, still life, portrait and landscape works are accepted using any graphic technique.
Entries must be submitted as JPG photographs, accompanied by a completed entry form and signed consent letter. The submission deadline is 7 September 2026. Entries should be sent to astrarkonkurs@mail.ru. The entry form and consent letter are available on the competition section of the website astrart.ru.
Results will be published on September 15 on the website of the Pavel Vlasov Art College. Winners will be honored, and an exhibition of selected works will be held.
Heydarian said the competition call would be extended to Iranian students, including those in Gilan and Mazandaran provinces.