Nasrollah Afjei

Nasrollah Afjei

Nasrollah Afjehei was born in 1933 in Tehran. From childhood, he was interested in painting and calligraphy, and at the age of fifteen, he began working in an art studio. A year later, he opened his own studio with a friend. After obtaining his high school diploma, Afjehei joined the “Miniature Advertising Center,” which he later described as an art academy run by Rassam Arabzadeh. There, he had the opportunity to study calligraphy alongside masters such as Kimia Qalam Zanjani and Ali Akbar Kaveh. In 1957, he co-founded the “Haft” studio with his friends Ali-Akbar Sadeghi, Alireza, and Mahmoud Basiri. Afjehei’s first international exhibition took place in 1974 at the International Painting Exhibition in Switzerland. Over the years, his calligraphic paintings have been displayed in countries including France, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Germany. In 1993, he was awarded the First-Class Art Medal by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. He has also been active in art education, teaching at the University of Tehran, Alzahra University, and Sooreh University. Between the 1960s and 1970s, under the influence of neo-traditional art movements, particularly the Saqqakhaneh School, Afjehei experimented with calligraphy in the context of modern painting. He presented the results of these experiments in 1972 in an exhibition titled Calligraphic Painting at Seyhoun Gallery. The term Calligraphic Painting was coined by Afjehei and later came to refer to works that combined painting and calligraphy. What stands out in Afjehei’s renowned calligraphic paintings is the presence of long, delicate strokes that intertwine to form a wavelike ocean of letters. These strokes, written with both fine and broad calligraphy pens, are condensed forms of a “line” that has now taken on a life of painting something beyond itself.

Resume

2021–2022 (1400–1399)

Tehran Auction – 15th Edition, Jan 14, 2022

Contemporary & Modern Art of the Middle East, North Africa & India Auction

International Art Auction

Contemporary & Modern Art of the Middle East & North Africa Auction

Post War & Contemporary Art Auction

Tehran Auction – 13th Edition

Tehran Auction – 5th Edition

Middle Eastern, Modern & Contemporary Art Auction, Nov 12, 2020

Selected Works Online Exhibition, May 28, 2020

2019–2018 (1398–1397)

Tehran Auction – 12th Edition, Jan 16, 2019

Middle Eastern, Modern & Contemporary Art Auction, Oct 23, 2019

Tehran Auction – 11th Edition, Jul 5, 2019

Tehran Auction – 10th Edition, Jan 10, 2018

Middle Eastern, Modern & Contemporary Art Auction, Nov 2, 2018

Tehran Auction – 9th Edition, Jul 29, 2018

Modern & Contemporary Art of the Middle East Auction, Apr 14, 2018

Dubai: Post War & Contemporary Art Auction, Apr 2, 2018

2017 (1396)

Contemporary & Modern Art of the Middle East Auction, Oct 25, 2017

Tehran Auction – 7th Edition, Jul 7, 2017

Drouot Richelieu, Salle 5, Abstract & Contemporary Art Auction, Jun 9, 2017

2016 (1395)

Contemporary & Modern Art Auction, Mar 18, 2016

Modern & Contemporary Art Auction, Oct 19, 2016

2015 (1394)

Modern & Contemporary Art Auction, Oct 20, 2015

Tehran Auction – 4th Edition, Jun 28, 2015

A Century of Iraqi Art & Modern & Contemporary Middle Eastern Art Auction, Apr 19, 2015

2014 (1393)

Contemporary & Modern Arab, Iranian & Turkish Art Auction, Oct 21, 2014

Contemporary Art / Doha Auction, Oct 13, 2014

Islamic & Indian Art Auction, Oct 7, 2014

Tehran Auction – 3rd Edition, Jun 29, 2014

Islamic & Indian Art Auction, Apr 8, 2014

2013 (1392)

Modern & Contemporary Arab, Iranian & Turkish Art Including Masterpieces from The Pharos Art Collection & From The Maath Alousi Collection Auction, Mar 18, 2013

Tehran Auction – 2nd Edition, Jun 27, 2013

Contemporary Art / Doha Auction, May 22, 2013

Modern & Contemporary Arab, Iranian & Turkish Art Part II Auction, Apr 16, 2013

2012 (1391)

Modern & Contemporary Arab, Iranian & Turkish Art Part I Auction, Oct 23, 2012

International Modern & Contemporary Art Auction, Oct 22, 2012

Tehran Auction – 1st Edition, Jun 21, 2012

Modern & Contemporary Arab, Iranian & Turkish Art Part I Auction, Apr 18, 2012

2011 (1390)

Visions d'Orient – From Orientalism to Contemporary Art Auction, Nov 4, 2011

Contemporary Arab, Iranian & Turkish Art – Part II Auction, Oct 26, 2011

Contemporary Art / Arab & Iranian Auction, Oct 4, 2011

Modern & Contemporary Arab, Iranian & Turkish Art Auction, Apr 19, 2011

Nasrollah Afjehei Solo Exhibition, Apr 1, 2011

2010–2009 (1389–1388)

February Auction, Feb 12, 2010

Hurouf: The Art of the Word Auction, Dec 16, 2010

Design, Contemporary Art, Contemporary Photography, Iranian Art Auction, Nov 25, 2010

Orientalist Paintings & Modern Arab & Iranian Art Auction, Nov 9, 2010

Contemporary Art / Arab & Iranian Auction, Oct 20, 2010

Modern & Contemporary Middle Eastern & South Asian Art Auction, Oct 11, 2010

Modern & Contemporary Middle Eastern & South Asian Art Auction, Jun 2, 2010

International Modern & Contemporary Art, Including Masterpieces from The Collection of Dr. Mohammed Said Farsi, Apr 27, 2010

International Contemporary & Modern Art Auction, Oct 27, 2009

Modern & Contemporary Iranian & Arab Art Auction, Oct 24, 2009

Contemporary Art Including Arab & Iranian Art Auction, Oct 16, 2009

Modern & Contemporary Middle Eastern & South Asian Art Auction, Oct 11, 2009

Orientalist Paintings & Modern Arab & Iranian Art Auction, Jun 16, 2009

Modern & Contemporary Middle Eastern & South Asian Art Auction, Jun 2, 2009

International Contemporary & Modern Art Auction, May 1, 2009

2008 (1387)

Contemporary Art Auction, Mar 18, 2008

International Orientalist Painting Auction, Dec 20 & 21, 2008

Orientalist Paintings & Modern Arab & Iranian Art Auction, Dec 17, 2008

Modern & Contemporary Arab, Iranian, Indian & Pakistani Art Auction, Nov 25, 2008

Contemporary & Modern Iranian & Arab Art Auction, Oct 24, 2008

Orientalist Paintings & Modern Arab & Iranian Art Auction, Jun 4, 2008

Exhibitions

Solo Exhibition, “Selected Works – Online Exhibition,” Artibition Gallery, 2020

Group Exhibition, “Modern Collector,” Artibition Gallery, 2022

Group Exhibition, “Lessons, No. 34,” Artibition Gallery, 2024