The director general of the cultural heritage office of Isfahan province said:

Identification of 70,000 Crafts and Traditional Artists in Isfahan Province / 40,000 Artists have been Licensed in Isfahan Province.

Fereydoun Allah Yari, director general of the cultural heritage office of Isfahan province, announced today the recognition of 70,000 crafts and traditional artists in the area of Isfahan province on the sidelines of three cultural and art events.

In a report by the Department of Public Relations of Isfahan Province Cultural Heritage Office, this morning, June 10, as World Craft Day is celebrated, Isfahan hosts 3 cultural events including: Isfahan Crafts Spring School, Cultural Meeting to Appreciate Isfahan Crafts Artists, and Opening of the Photography Exhibition contained recorded images of Isfahan art and crafts by young Isfahan photographers.

Fereidoun Allah Yari, on the sidelines of these three cultural events, delivered a speech addressing the pioneering and young crafts artists and art lovers of the province. He emphasized: undoubtedly, Isfahan as the second crafts world city, has played an important role in the development of the culture and civilization of this ancient land.

He also stated: Although many scholars regard industrial development after the Renaissance in Europe and the beginning of the industrial revolution in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the handicrafts as an industry at least in the central plateau of Iran goes back to 6000 years ago, which is a manifestation of the art of the people of this land.

He added: If we admit that art is their first step in thinking, so the people of this land have been the pioneers of human thought in the world by creating art thousands of years ago.

Addressing the role of handicrafts in employment creation and entrepreneurship in the country, Allah Yari emphasized: Given the supreme leader’s recent slogans of Nowruz, especially this year's slogan of "boosting production," there is no doubt that handicrafts play an important role in the country's employment and entrepreneurship. So, with the presence of one-third of the world's handicrafts in Isfahan province, estimations by the province's Cultural Heritage Office suggest that there are now 70,000 handicraft artists in Isfahan province; over the past few years, about 5,000 artists have been identified and registered. We have been able to identify 40,000 artists over the last four years in the province.

Today and in conjunction with World Crafts Day in partnership with Isfahan Cultural Heritage Office, Isfahan Municipality, and Isfahan Art District, 3 cultural events including: First Isfahan Crafts Spring School, Cultural Meeting to Appreciate Isfahan Crafts Artists as well as Photo Exhibition by Artists and Isfahan handicrafts were opened or held.