● Birthplace: Qom
Biography
He received his bachelor’s degree from Faculty of Fine Arts in Tehran, and his master’s degree from University of Wisconsin in United States. A significant part of his career has been in teaching art. As much as it can be said that he has made a significant contribution to the opening of modernism and modern art to Iran and its direction, a well-known master has been teaching art in art schools and colleges since 1964, and at the same time teaching visual arts, books. He has also written many works in art education, and because of these extensive activities in the teaching of culture and art, he has been awarded the first-class badge of culture and art (equivalent to a doctorate degree) by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. Master Gholamhossein Nami is generally interested in the non-figurative and abstract world, white-gray, in his works, even when he paid attention to figure and color in academic experiences and beyond. With this space freed from the shackles of color and form, he sought to reveal his volumetric capacity in geometric proportions, thus achieving the design of his white volumes, although he himself says that these volumes are the product of It was a coincidence, but the pursuit of this style suggests that he was consistent with this kind of abstract structure, which is a combination of painting and sculpture. But in general, his work can be divided into two categories outside of Figurative’s work: the family of his white-gray abstract works, which he has been creating since about 1966 and continues for about eighteen years, resulting in works in pure abstraction. Created in two-dimensional and three-dimensional form, these works, while having a formless form, immerse the viewer in their whiteness, what they want to say, what they are, what is going on behind them, like a cry of silence, like a speechless look. That has a lot to say in the heart.
The second group are works that appear almost simultaneously with this period, and the first work of this period was created in 1966 and is kept in the treasury of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Tehran. The curved circulation of the letters captures his paintings, and the clutter of colored crescents sometimes makes up his galaxy. These letters, after a very short time, are also found in his thatch.
One of the most influential artistic periods of Master Gholamhossein Nami is when he was joined by artists such as: Morteza Momayez, Faramarz Pilaram, Marco Gregorian, Massoud Arabshahi, Abdolreza Daryabigi, Sirak Malkonian; They formed a free group. The group was active for four years and held several very successful exhibitions in Iran and around the world. It attracted a lot of attention from Iranian and foreign critics. During its lifetime, it caused a storm, which was unfortunately resolved by a dispute between several members.
Master Nami, travels to the United States to continue his education and returns to Iran during the imposed war; He thinks that this new space demands a proper expression and shape, and that he spends eight years thinking more and painting less. Although he continues his etudes of nature during this period, in order to refine them, he seeks both a form that reflects both the changed times and the artist’s creative perception of his time. The 1988 exhibition presents the results of his various experiences to audiences who have seen him as more of a formalist painter than a conceptualist. The sharp social color of his paintings, which focuses on violence, death, and devastation, surprises a group of painter’s supporters. Activated and silent, abandoned houses and ruined and stormy spaces, which explode in the horizons. And in the works of the 1990s onwards, we are dealing with his earthly works, which follow the experiences of Marco Gregorian.
From the Point of View of Others
Parviz Kalantari, Painter: When I graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts, he was a student. He has been holding exhibitions since then. We have also held various exhibitions outside of Iran, including in Switzerland and the United States. All the grace of contemporary painting is its diversity, a name has a place in Iranian art for itself, a name famous in Iranian art: its white cloths, Goliash’s works and his calligraphy are among his famous works.
Khosrow Sinaei, Director and screenwriter: He has been active in the visual arts in Iran for more than five decades and is still looking for new experiences in his work, which is commendable. I really like the works of fame and I think that considering his background in the visual arts of Iran, he still has the spirit to experience new forms, as we have seen in his white drawings before, and today we see how good and appropriate the colors are in his works. Other than that, you can’t expect him.
– Master Nami uses Iranian elements in his works because any work that wants to have an identity must be related to the identity of the artist who creates it. In several recent exhibitions, we have seen works by him in which he has taken help from the calligraphy and brought it closer to the abstract forms of his works.
Shahram Nazeri, Great Iranian singer and musician, said about the works of the famous master: I felt the music in the arcs and angles of the famous work. His works can be viewed from different modernist, traditional, Oriental, and Iranian perspectives because they contain all the characteristics of them.
Alireza Sami Azar, Lecturer in the History of Contemporary Art: Gholamhossein Nami is a true modernist who has played an important role in spreading the values of modernist aestheticism in Iran through his works and teachings.
Bibliography
1967 – Part of the Children’s Painting Handbook – Ministry of Culture and Arts Publications
1975 – The Book of Principles and the Basis of Design – Iran Textbook Publications
1985 – Design book with pen and ink
1993 – Basics of Visual Arts – Visual Communication
1996 – Selected Book of Works from 1963 to 1994 – Iranian Art Publishing
Educational Activities
1986 – 1994 – Teaching Art at the Conservatory of Visual Arts,
1975 – 1968 and 1987 – 1986 – Al-Zahra University (former girls’ high school)
1977 – 1973 – Faculty of Decorative Arts (current University of the Arts)
1987 – 1992 – Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Science and Technology
1987 – 1982 – Islamic Azad University
1992 – 1987 – Niavaran Cultural Center
Art Activities
1999 – Secretary of the First International Exhibition of Contemporary Design in Tehran
1999 – President of the Iranian Painters’ Association
2000 – Secretary of the Contemporary Iranian Design Exhibition – Vision
2003 – Chairman of the Arbitration Board – 11th Asian Biennial of Dhaka – Bangladesh
Exhibitions
1964 – 1966 – Fourth and fifth biennials of Tehran
1967 – Paris Biennale
1968 – 1970 – French Surmer Connie Festival
1974 – Juan Miro International Design Festival – Spain
1974 – The first international art exhibition in Tehran
1977 – Wash Art International Exhibition – USA
1976 – 1978 – Swiss International Ballet Exhibition
1991 – Iranian Painting Biennials – Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art
2000 – 2001 – International Biennial of Islamic Painting, Museum of Contemporary Art, Tehran
Awards and Honors
1966 – First prize of the group exhibition of Iranian artists, on the occasion of Mother’s Day, at Burgess Gallery – Tehran and
1966 – Italian government scholarship in the fifth biennial – Tehran
1967 – Honorary Diploma of the Exhibition on the occasion of the Day of Combating Illiteracy – Museum of Ancient Iran – Tehran
1968 – World Human Rights Day Exhibition Award – New Museum of Ancient Iran – Tehran
1970 – French National Award at the Cannes Surmer Festival in France
1980 – Two gold medals and official membership of the Italian Academy of Arts
1983 – International Cultural and Artistic Award for the Victory Sculpture from the Center for Italian Cultural Studies and Research
1983 – Gold Medal of the United States International Parliament
1984 – Golden Flame Sculpture Award, International Parliament of the United States of America
1984 – European Flag of Art and Gold Medal Award from the European Academy – Italy
1985 – Italian Academy Awards 1985 – Italian Academy
1987 – European Golden Palm Award – European Academy – Italy
2006 – Honorary Award – Iranica Encyclopedia Foundation – Columbia University – USA
Presence of Works In Museums And Collections
– Museum of Contemporary Art – Tehran
– Museum of Contemporary Art – Kerman
– Museum of Fine Arts – Saadabad Palace and Niavaran Palace – Tehran
– The permanent collection of International House – Philadelphia – USA
– University of Temple – Philadelphia – USA
– Milwaukee Museum of Art – USA
