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Pariyoush Ganji
Painter
Iran
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Born in 1945, Tabriz
Her father was a master textile designer and one of the first craftsmen to engage in textile printing in Iran. In 1948, the family moved to Tehran. During childhood, as she grew more familiar with her father's work, Pariyoush decided to study art. At the age of 12, she took part in an art competition in Tehran; she had the first position in her district and the second in Tehran. In high school, her talent was recognized by her art teacher, who encouraged and guided Pariyoush to enroll in school of art.
Ganji completed her initial formal art education at the Girl's School of Fine Arts, where she majored in painting under the guidance of Reza Firouzi and Mahmoud Farshchian, the famous Iranian miniaturist. In the meantime she learnt textile design and painting from her father.
On recovering her high school diploma, Pariyoush went to England to continue her studies. Her contact with London's art institutions, participation in classes at the St. Martin's School of Fine Arts and the open atmosphere of the arts program at the Sir John Cass Art School, broadened her artistic outlook. Over the following two years, Pariyoush supported herself by selling her painting and miniatures, and in 1970 she continued her studies at Chelsea School of Fine Arts, graduating in 1973. Her thesis, The Safavid Tiles of Isfahan, was inspired by original Iranian designs and paintings. For a while, she freelanced selling her designs to various textile printing factories. In 1974, she traveled to Germany and was hired as designer for Dura Tufting GMBH, a major carpet and textile factory in Fulda, where she was quickly promoted to senior designer. Her close contact with European expressionist painters in general and German pioneers' color experiments in particular, brought fresh inspiration and widened her artistic skills and technique.
In 1975, Ganji moved to France to enroll in a course at Ecole de Beaux Art in Paris. What is most notable on her work in this period is that it captures the kinetic movement of esoteric arabesque designs of Persian carpets, inspired by the dancing human form.
After completing her courses in Paris, she returned to Iran in 1976. She collaborated for a while with Center for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults. She also helped curate an exhibition of children's painting and illustrated a book. It was at this time that she married and went on to have 2 children. The family lived abroad for several years.
In 1986, She moved to Iran for good and took up teaching in a number of art schools and universities in Tehran. In 1997, she was invited to Japan, by Japan Foundation to research the visual art of Far East and to know how it has been influenced by Sassanid patterns through the Silk Road.
Pariyoush Ganji lives in Tehran now (2004), creating her modern works. Most of her paintings are in private collections and some in museums in the world.
She had numerous individual and group exhibitions at England, Germany, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kirqizestan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabi, USA, Uzbekistan and Iran.
Art Professor at:
Al-Zahra University, Tehran
Faculty of Art, Textile Design Dept., Art University, Tehran
Faculty of Art & Design, Azad University, Tehran
Cultural Heritage Organization, Tehran
Jury Memberships:
Contemporary Drawing in Iran, Contemporary Arts Museum, Tehran, 2000
Fifth Oman Painting Exhibition, 1999
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