TEHRAN -- The Engineering Department of the Foundation for the Preservation and Publication of Sacred Defense Works and Values will be holding an international contest for the creation of a memorial for the martyrs of the Sardasht Chemical bombardment.

The designs should aim to commemorate the event, and should be in the form of monuments, statues, conceptual artworks, or installation works that focus on the theme of the oppression and solitude of the martyrs, and the chemically wounded veterans, of Sardasht.

Sardasht, a city in Northwestern Iran, lies in West Azarbaijan Province. It was the first city in which civilians were attacked with chemical weapons by Saddam Hussein during the Iran-Iraq war.

According to the secretariat of the contest, the works must be able to resist the cold and wet climate of that region, and should be between 15 and 25 meters high.

Interested artists should submit the maquettes of their work to the secretariat, located at No 33, Haqparast Lane, Sarafraz St, off Beheshti Ave, no later than June 20.

The first prize winner will receive 4,000 euros and the contest’s plaque.

The organizers of the contest have announced that the time limit for the submission of work will not be extended.