Jalil Ziyapour

Jalil Ziapour, the founder of modern painting in Iran, was born in 1920 in Bandar Anzali. After studying at the Conservatory of Music, he enrolled in the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Tehran, where he created his first Expressionist works. Following the award of a scholarship, he moved to France and joined the Académie André Lhote, where he became deeply familiar with Cubism and the social role of art. His time in France marked the beginning of his modernist thinking, both in his artworks and theoretical writings. Upon returning to Iran in 1948, Ziapour established his personal studio and, along with a group of progressive artists, founded the cultural association Khorus Jangi (“The Fighting Rooster”), which published a magazine dedicated to modern art with a critical perspective. Although the publication was soon shut down due to political misunderstandings and opposition from traditionalist circles, Ziapour remained at the forefront of artistic transformation in Iran. Until the end of his life—and despite illness—he continued to teach modern Iranian art at universities and played a pioneering role in introducing modernism and critiquing traditional art in Iran. Jalil Ziapour passed away in Tehran in 1999.