List of Iranian artists

Last updated September 01, 2025

The following list of notable Iranian artists (in alphabetical order by last name) includes artists of various genres, who are notable and are either born in Iran, of Iranian descent or who produce works that are primarily about Iran.

Cinema artists

Designers

Architects

Calligraphers

Ali Adjalli (born 1939)
Gholam Hossein Amirkhani (born 1939)
Abolhassan Etessami (1903–1978)
Mir Emad Hassani (1553-1615)
Seyyed Jafar Kashfi (born 2000)
Yadollah Kaboli Khansari (born 1949)
Mishkín-Qalam (1826–1912)
Jalil Rasouli (born 1947)
Mehdi Saeedi (born 1979)
Mir Ali Tabrizi (1329-1451)
Towhidi Tabari (born 1964)

Fashion designers

Ray Aghayan (1928–2011) fashion designer and costume designer, Emmy Award winner.^[1]
Pegah Anvarian, Iranian-born American fashion designer, stylist, creative director, and interior designer
Shirin Guild (born 1946) fashion designer in London
Mehr Monir Jahanbani (1926–2018), textile designer and fashion designer
Arefeh Mansouri (born 1980)
Hushidar Mortezaie (born 1972), fashion designer of club wear and streetwear, active in New York City and Los Angeles
Behnaz Sarafpour (born 1969), fashion designer of womenswear and fragrances; based in New York
Bijan (designer) (1940–2012), fashion designer of menswear and fragrances^[2]
Mahla Zamani (born 1900)

Graphic designers

Dariush Borbor (born 1934)
Reza Abedini (born 1967)
Farshid Mesghali (born 1943)
Ali Asghar Mohtaj (born 1943)
Morteza Momayez (1935–2005)
Mehdi Saeedi (born 1979)
Ghobad Shiva (born 1940)
Reza Abbasi (1564-1635)

Illustrators

Nahid Hagigat (born 1943), illustrator, and painter
Mojtaba Heidarpanah (born 1990) is an Iranian cartoonist, illustrator, painter, character designer and animator
Rashin Kheiriyeh (born 1979), illustrator, children's book author, digital artist, and animator

Musicians and singers

Electronic

Leila Arab
Deep Dish
- Ali "Dubfire" Shirazinia (of Deep Dish)
- Shahram Tayebi (of Deep Dish)
Ali Movasat (DJ Aligator)
Steve Naghavi (of German industrial group And One)

Rock/metal

Performing artists

Comedians

Omid Djalili (born 1965)
Negin Farsad
Maz Jobrani (born 1972)
Hadi Khorsandi (born 1943)
Shaparak Khorsandi (born 1973)
Ebrahim Nabavi (born 1958)

Dancers

Theatre directors

Akbar Alizad (born 1973)
Bahram Bayzai (born 1938)
Niloofar Beyzaie (born 1967)
Shiva Boloorian (born 1979)
Hossein Nuri (born 1954)
Hossein Rajabian (born 1984)
Reza Shirmarz (born 1974)

Theatre stage actors

Shohreh Aghdashloo (born 1952)
Dariush Arjmand (born 1944)
Mehdi Bajestani (born 1974)
Shiva Boloorian (born 1979)
Behzad Farahani (born 1945)
Mohammad Reza Jozi (born 1975)
Ali Nassirian (born 1935)
Ahmad Saatchian (born 1972)
Roya Teymourian (born 1959)

Visual artists

Cartoonists

Javad Alizadeh (born 1953)
Ardeshir Mohassess (1938–2008)
Ali Divandari (born 1957)
Nikahang Kowsar (born 1969)
Alireza Karimi Moghaddam (born 1975)
Mojtaba Heidarpanah (born 1990)
Mana Neyestani (born 1973)
Touka Neyestani (born 1960

Multimedia and mixed media

Golnar Adili (born 1976)^[3]
Morehshin Allahyari (born 1985) (active since 2007), artist, activist
Shirin Aliabadi (1973–2018), multidisciplinary visual artist, active in Tehran and Paris.^[4]
Shahin Charmi (born 1953), Iranian-born German multidisciplinary artist and muralist.^[5]
Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian (1924–2019) best known for her mirror mosaics, sculptor, painter, textile designer.
Ghazel (1966), visual and performance artist
Gita Hashemi (born 1961) (active since 1981), transdiscplinary, performance art, installations, digital and multimedia art
Bahman Mohasses (1931–2010), painter, sculptor, translator, and theatre director
Neda Moridpour (born 1983), artist, educator and co-founder of the artist-activist collaborative Louder than Words
Shirin Neshat (born 1957), film, video and photography
Hossein Nuri (born 1954), painter, dramaturge and filmmaker
Ramin, Rokni, Hesam (born 1975,1978,1980)
Mohammad Salemy (born 1967)^[6]
Soheila Sokhanvari (born 1964), painter, sculptor, and multi-media artist
Sheida Soleimani, (born 1990), Iranian-American, 'constructed' tableau photography.^[7]
Daryush Shokof (born1954), artist, sculptor,script writer, film producer,video,filmmaker,singer,lyricist
Parviz Tanavoli (born 1937), sculptor, painter, scholar and art collector
Sadegh Tirafkan (1965–2013), photography, video installation, and collage
Hossein Valamanesh (born 1949), Iranian-Australian public art and multimedia.^[8]
Hossein Zenderoudi (born 1937), painter and sculptor
Afshin Naghouni (born 1969), painter, mixed media.^[9]
Saman and Sasan Oskouei (born 1985 & 1991), multidisciplinary artist-

activists ^[10]

Amir Sheikhvand (born 1979), jewelry artist

Painters

Reza Abbasi (c. 1565-1635)
Shahla Aghapour (born 1976)
Aydin Aghdashloo (born 1940)
Anahita Akhavan
Kamrooz Aram (born 1978)
Akbar Behkalam (1944–2025)
Hossein Behzad (1894–1968), Modernist Persian miniature paintings
Kamaleddin Behzad (1450–1535), Persian miniature paintings
Dariush Borbor (born 1934)
Bijan Daneshmand (born 1958)
Iran Darroudi (1936–2021), surrealist paintings
Ali Divandari (born 1957)
Ala Ebtekar (born 1978) American-born Iranian painter and professor^[11]
Ahmad Esfandiari (1922–2012) modernist painter
Darvish Fakhr (born 1969)
Mahmoud Farshchian (1930–2025), Persian
Golnaz Fathi (born 1972)
Pariyoush Ganji (born 1945), painter based in Tehran
Mokarrameh Ghanbari (1928–2005)
Rokni Haerizadeh (born 1978)
Raoof Haghighi (born 1976)
Fariba Hajamadi (born 1957)
Maryam Hashemi (born 1977)
Khosrow Hassanzadeh (born 1963)
Haydar Hatemi (born 1945), Persian miniatures and tazhib
Taraneh Hemami (born 1960), visual artist based in the San Francisco Bay Area
Pouran Jinchi (born 1959), abstract, calligraphy-based contemporary visual art
Bahram Kalhornia (born 1952)
Zhaleh Kazemi (1944–2003), painter
Reza Khodadadi (born 1961)
Iman Maleki (born 1976), realist painter
Mani (AD 216 - AD 277)
Leyly Matine-Daftary (1937–2007), modernist artist, educator^[12]
Sirak Melkonian (1930–2024), modernist painter
Farhad Moshiri (born 1963), pop art
Noreen Motamed (born 1967)
Hossein Nuri (born 1954)
Kamal ol-Molk (1845–1940)
Nasser Ovissi (born 1934) Iranian-born American painter
Pantea Rahmani (born 1971)
Tarlan Rafiee (born 1980)
Raha Raissnia (born 1968)
Ramin, Rokni, Hesam (born 1975,1978,1980)
Gholamhossein Saber (born 1941)
Ali Akbar Sadeghi (born 1937), surrealist
Abolhassan Khan Sadighi (1894–1995)
Homayoun Salimi (born 1948)
Yashar Samimi Mofakham (born 1979)
Sohrab Sepehri (1928–1980), Modernist painter
Alireza Shojaian (born 1988), queer artist and LGBT activist
Daryush Shokof (1954)
Keyvan Shovir (born 1985), Iranian American graffiti artist
Sadegh Tabrizi (1938–2017), Iranian modern painter, calligrapher
Mohammad Ali Taraghijah (1943–2010)
Taravat Talepasand (born 1979), Iranian American painter and sculptor
Mohsen Vaziri-Moghaddam (1924–2018)
Darius Yektai (born 1973)
Manoucher Yektai (1922–2019)

Photography

Ahmad Aali (born 1935)
Abbas (1944–2018)
Morteza Avini (1947–1993)
Gohar Dashti (born 1980)
Nader Davoodi (born 1963)
Reza Deghati (born 1952)
Shahram Entekhabi (born 1963)
Kaveh Golestan (1950–2003)
Shadi Ghadirian (born 1974)
Nasrollah Kasraian (born 1944)
Sanaz Mazinani (born 1978)
Ahmad Nateghi (born 1958)
Malekeh Nayiny (born 1955)
Hossein Rajabian (born 1984)
Jahangir Razmi (born 1947)
Rahi Rezvani (born 1978)
Sadegh Tirafkan (1965–2013)
Ali Khan Vali (1845–1902)
Alfred Yaghobzadeh (born 1958)
Maryam Zandi (born 1947)

Sculpture and installation

Kamran Afshar Naderi (born 1959)
Siah Armajani (1939–2020)
Dariush Borbor (born 1934), architect, urban planner, sculptor, painter, researcher, writer
Fatemeh Emdadian (born 1955)
Shahram Entekhabi (born 1963), contemporary sculptor^[13]
Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian (1924–2019)
Bita Fayyazi (born 1962), public art
Bita Ghezelayagh (born 1966)
Ahad Hosseini (born 1944), Iranian Azerbaijani sculptor and painter
Mandana Moghaddam (born 1962), Iranian-Swedish installation artist and sculptor^[14]
Bahman Mohasses (1931–2010), painter, sculptor, translator, and theatre director
Parviz Tanavoli (born 1937)
Abolhassan Khan Sadighi (1894–1995)
Ramin, Rokni, Hesam (born 1975,1978,1980)
Shirana Shahbazi (born 1974)
Taher Shekh Al Hokamaii (born 1954), Dean of Sculpture Faculty of Tehran University and contemporary sculptor

Daryush Shokof (1954)

References

↑ Vitello, Paul (2011-10-15). "Ray Aghayan, Costume Designer, Dies at 83". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-03-22.
↑ Wilson, Eric (19 April 2011). "Bijan Pakzad, Designer of High Fashion, Dies at 71". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
↑ "Golnar Adili". Victori Contemporary. Archived from the original on 2016-10-06. Retrieved 2016-04-10.
↑ Seelye, Katharine Q. (2018-10-19). "Shirin Aliabadi, Iranian Artist With a Focus on Women, Dies at 45". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 2021-03-22.
↑ Wettbewerb um den "Goldenen Plotter '88": Computergrafik, Bildschirmfotos, Animation/Video, elektronische Objekte, Mischtechniken (in German). Stadtdirektor der Stadt Gladbeck, Dezernat IV, Museum der Stadt Gladbeck. 1988. ISBN 978-3-923815-15-9.
↑ "Introduce #10: Mohammad Salemy - for Machine Use Only".
↑ "Sheida Soleimani". www.huffpost.com. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
↑ "Hossein Valamanesh". Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) Australia. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
↑ "BBC World Service - In the Studio, Afshin Naghouni: Jelly beans and nostalgia". BBC. Retrieved 2022-09-02.
↑ "ICY & SOT interview: Iran's street art siblings on censorship, activism & advocacy". March 2018.
↑ "2018 Exploring Public Art Practices Symposium". Kenneth Rainin Foundation. 2018-01-04. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
↑ "Leyly Matin-Daftary". AskArt. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
↑ "Promising Experiments". Tavoos Online. Retrieved 2016-05-17.
↑ "Mandana Moghaddam: Chelgis II and the Iranian Woman". Archived from the original on 2016-05-04. Retrieved 2016-03-24.

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[1] Vitello, Paul (2011-10-15). "Ray Aghayan, Costume Designer, Dies at 83". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-03-22.

[2] Wilson, Eric (19 April 2011). "Bijan Pakzad, Designer of High Fashion, Dies at 71". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-03-24.

[3] "Golnar Adili". Victori Contemporary. Archived from the original on 2016-10-06. Retrieved 2016-04-10.

[4] Seelye, Katharine Q. (2018-10-19). "Shirin Aliabadi, Iranian Artist With a Focus on Women, Dies at 45". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 2021-03-22.

[5] Wettbewerb um den "Goldenen Plotter '88": Computergrafik, Bildschirmfotos, Animation/Video, elektronische Objekte, Mischtechniken (in German). Stadtdirektor der Stadt Gladbeck, Dezernat IV, Museum der Stadt Gladbeck. 1988. ISBN 978-3-923815-15-9.

[6] "Introduce #10: Mohammad Salemy - for Machine Use Only".

[7] "Sheida Soleimani". www.huffpost.com. Retrieved 2019-12-12.

[8] "Hossein Valamanesh". Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) Australia. Retrieved 2019-12-12.

[9] "BBC World Service - In the Studio, Afshin Naghouni: Jelly beans and nostalgia". BBC. Retrieved 2022-09-02.

[10] "ICY & SOT interview: Iran's street art siblings on censorship, activism & advocacy". March 2018.

[11] "2018 Exploring Public Art Practices Symposium". Kenneth Rainin Foundation. 2018-01-04. Retrieved 2019-12-12.

[12] "Leyly Matin-Daftary". AskArt. Retrieved 2016-03-24.

[13] "Promising Experiments". Tavoos Online. Retrieved 2016-05-17.

[14] "Mandana Moghaddam: Chelgis II and the Iranian Woman". Archived from the original on 2016-05-04. Retrieved 2016-03-24.

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