Search Result : Raha Gallery Collection

  • Wahed Khakdan, the distinguished Iranian painter, passed away a few days ago, on October 23, at the age of 75. In tribute to this eminent artist, we examine one of his remarkable and thought-provoking works preserved in the Raha Gallery Middle East Collection — a seminal painting in which Khakdan, the master painter, creates a poetic and melancholic dialogue between childhood and violence, between beauty and destruction. Each component of the painting carries a visual memory that, when…

  • This painting by Bita Vakili, accompanied by an original composition and lyrics, reinterprets national identity through a contemporary, multimedia perspective. Combining material science, cartography, and conceptual art, Vakili portrays Iran not as a geographical territory but as a living, dynamic, and multilayered being. In her vision, metals flow like the veins of civilization through the body of the earth, and every washer and bolt carries traces of labor, endurance, and history. Here,…

  • This painting is a remarkable example of the enduring tradition of Persian miniature painting in the modern era—an artwork that poetically and vividly reimagines Iran’s epic and mythological past through a precise and expressive visual language. While remaining faithful to classical forms, Zaviyeh infused the work with his own rhythm, palette, and composition, creating a piece that is both a reflection of history and a mirror of the Iranian aesthetic spirit.

  • The traces of goats on the painted ceramics of ancient Susa find their way into the gazelles of Persian poetry and Iranian miniature in this painting, which has endured for more than half a century. The fusion of the “mythical animal” with “geometric abstraction” embodies a quest for identity—one that remains distinctly Eastern and Iranian, yet resonates in dialogue with international modern art.

  • The 53-year-old work Variation Tendre Tourmaline by Hossein Zenderoudi bears a French title meaning “Tender Tourmaline,” a poetic reference to a semi-precious stone. The name infuses the composition with a sense of preciousness and delicacy, enhancing the gem-like quality of its calligraphic lines. The painting is a visual–spiritual experience: letters swirl like particles of energy, inviting viewers to contemplate both meaning and form.

  • Massoud Arabshahi, the eminent Iranian painter, was born on September 10, 1935, and passed away on September 16, 2019. On the occasion of his birthday, we revisit one of his remarkable works housed in the Raha Gallery Collection. This painting stands as a clear example of Arabshahi’s enduring approach to mythic abstraction. Throughout his career, such works reflected his lifelong concern with reimagining the visual language of ancient Iran in a contemporary form. In terms of both scale and…

  • The sculpture Ahura Mazda, at the heart of Elham Fallahi’s monumental installation Bundahishn, is not merely one among its 82 sculptures but the conceptual, visual, and philosophical core of the work—the point where chaos and waste are transfigured into creation and meaning.

  • Nasser Ovissi is perhaps the only Iranian artist to have held a joint exhibition with Salvador Dalí. In this luminous painting, blue reigns supreme — the very soul of the work; a color that in Iranian culture symbolizes tranquility, spirituality, and the sky. Against this vast blue expanse, flashes of red in the cheeks, the horse’s ear ornaments, and the woman’s ribbons pulse like a warm heartbeat, guiding the viewer’s gaze toward the focal points.

  • This painting is among the most dramatic and yet hopeful works of Wahed Khakdan—an exquisitely melancholic and subtly humorous piece held in the Raha Middle East Gallery Collection. Khakdan, with his distinctive mastery, avoids depicting superficial joy; instead, he evokes a forgotten but resilient kind of happiness—one that lingers quietly within ordinary objects, faded memories, and muted colors. Embedded within the painting are layers of Iranian culture—carpets, traditional letters, the…

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