This weekend, Atlantans are invited to a one-of-a-kind festival!
The Iran Unveiled Festival, hosted by Nimruz, an Iranian diaspora art & education non-profit; the Persian Cultural Center of Atlanta; and the Georgia-based National Monuments Foundation, is a massive celebration of Persian culture in the ATL! The festival will take over Pardis Park this weekend with an artisan market, tons of delicious food, and the unveiling of a brand new statue! Keep scrolling for all the details.
What can attendees expect at the Iran Unveiled Festival?
On top of a wonderful time celebrating with the community? There are so many fun things to get excited for! Here’s a taste of what festival-goers can expect:
- delicious Persian & Persian-inspired food
- artisan vendors
- live classical Persian music
- a lively DJ set from 2-4pm
- interactive workshops
- traditional Iranian games
- hands-on arts and crafts
Attendees will also get to enjoy ‘Iranian Art Through Time’, an artistic exhibition that follows Persian art all the way from ancient pottery and rhytons through poetry, miniature painting, calligraphy, and architecture, then on to Persian rugs and contemporary Iranian cinema.
The Unveiling of the Statue of Cyrus the Great
At 12:30pm on Saturday, festival-goers will get to watch the unveiling Atlanta’s newest statue installation: a bronze statue of Cyrus the Great, the founder of Ancient Persia.
The statue, sculpted by Stan Mullins, will stand permanently in Pardis Park.
Rostam Zafari, co-founder and board chair of Nimruz who led the creation of Pardis Park and its art installation, said in a statement,
I wanted Cyrus the Great to have a permanent home here in Atlanta. This festival is for everyone. Come see the Cyrus statue, travel through centuries of history in the exhibition, and stay to share Persian food and music with your neighbors.
The unveiling will include remarks from the President of the National Monuments Foundation, Rodney Cook; Nimruz’s Rostam Zafari; and actor Arian Moayed (‘Succession’), the co-founder of Waterwell!
Okay, I’ve gotta check this out! Details, please!
When: Saturday, October 24, 2026 from 11am – 4pm
*Statue unveiling ceremony at ~ 12:30 PM
Where: Pardis Park | 395 17th St NW, Atlanta, GA 30363
Cost: FREE to enter & open to the public | all ages welcome
*no ticket or reservation is required to enter
This festival is intentionally non-political. It exists to celebrate Persian identity in its full diversity, not to advance any partisan cause.
For more information about the festival, you can head to Nimruz’s website, here!
Don’t miss out on this amazing event, Atlanta! Get ready for great food, great art, and great community!
And if you’d like to learn more about the festival’s organizers, you can click into their websites, here:
- Nimruz: a nonprofit that cultivates Iranian culture in a way that deepens connection within the Iranian diaspora community, and the leading funder of Iranian diaspora artists.
- The Persian Cultural Center of Atlanta: a nonprofit committed to promoting Persian culture and fostering intercultural understanding.
- The National Monuments Foundation: the owner and operator or Pardis Park and the Millennium Gate Museum, with a mission is to create beautiful, self-sustaining destination landmarks of national and historical relevance.