Mohammad Hamidi

Mohammad Hamidi was a “Qahveh-Khaneh” artist born in 1940 in Fariman, Iran. He was one of the last students of Qolam-Ali Aghasi, one of the two founders of the “Qahveh-Khaneh” painting tradition in Iran. While traces of his master’s influence can still be seen in Hamidi’s works—particularly in the rendering of costumes—he employed a broader and more varied color palette, which enhanced the decorative quality of his paintings. In contrast to his master, Hamidi incorporated more elements of Persian miniature painting in his practice. He was particularly interested in depicting traditional customs and Qajar-era portraiture, although religious themes and narratives inspired by the Shahnameh also appear in his body of work. Many of his paintings are preserved in the Sa’dabad Palace Museum as well as various cultural and artistic institutions. His works were also featured in the third exhibition of the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art in 1994. In addition to his practice as a coffeehouse painter, Hamidi worked as a photographer for over 50 years in his photography studio in Mashhad. His works, along with those of his two brothers, were published in the books Sout-e Delan and From the Qahveh-Khaneh to Niavaran by Hadi Seif. Hamidi played a significant role in teaching and passing on the Qahveh-Khaneh painting tradition to his two artist brothers. He passed away in 2001.