A1one

A1one (1981; pronounced alone; ) is the pseudonym of Karan Reshad, an Iranian visual artist who pioneered graffiti and street art in Iran. His career as a street artist began in his hometown Tehran.

Life and career Born in 1981, A1one grew up in Iran during a period of war and the Khatami reform era (1997–2005). A1one studied for 5 years at the Faculty of Art and Architecture in one of the Universities in Tehran. While still a student, he began painting graffiti on the walls of his campus, as a protest against students' conditions. He was eventually expelled by the university's principal following a disagreement over religious restrictions.

After being expelled from the university, his graffiti activities in the city of Tehran increased. A1one was the first person to start painting on the city walls. Therefore, his name can be interpreted as "Alone" or "First One". A1one started painting walls in the late 1990s. He is the pioneer of the urban art scene in the Middle East. When he began, it was a time when nobody knew what graffiti was in his country. He had a very influential role in the rise of street art and stenciling within Iran.

Already involved in urban arts in general, he met the rapper, Nima, in 2005, who told him everything about the graffiti culture, which triggered A1one's desire to grow in that direction. His first significant work was a painting under the Tehran-Karaj expressway called Searching for Friends.

He started his street art project in 2003 and inspired his close friends at that time to also begin painting on the streets. Artists such as Elle, isba, K.T., and Magoi were the first people to join him in Tehran. With his public space art, he describes his view on Iranian society and puts himself regularly in danger.

In 2007, he was invited to illustrate the cover of a book, Young and Defiant in Iran; a contemporary ethnographic work by Shahram Khosravi.

Style A1one's art world is dynamic and made of many different styles, from portraits to calligraphy and funky characters which he mostly uses for his stickers. A1one's art combines Persian calligraphy and Western graffiti. His art has been documented by many photographers and featured in Art Asia Pacific Magazine.

The artist has been working on a distinctly Iranian style of calligraffiti, which is "a fusion of hip-hop graffiti and Persian typography". His style is recognized across the Islamic graffiti world. He has made a handful of the greatest Style walls with Arabic letter graffiti since 2004.

Selected exhibitions Group shows (selected) 2005 "Portrait and Expression", Behzad Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran 2006 "Start Propaganda II", Los Angeles, USA 2007 "Process Invisible", Street Level Gallery, Portland, USA 2007 "Resist", La Condition Pablique, Roubaix, France 2007 "Spray 2007", Mehrin Art Gallery, Tehran, IRAN 2008 "Iranian Contemporary Artists Expo", Molavi Organization Hall, Tehran, IRAN 2008 "Visual Slang", Henry Art Settlement, NY, USA 2008 "400 ML", Paris, France 2008 "Melbourne Stencil Festival 08", Yarra Sculpture Gallery, Melbourne, Australia 2008 "Spray1387", Arete Gallery, Tehran, IRAN 2008 12 Inch Art, Winnipeg Canada 2008 Vinyl Killers, Portland, USA 2009 Your Kid Can't Do this / Group show Touring Australia 2009 Visual Slang III / New York 2009 Urban Art Agenda / Melbourne / Brisbane, Australia 2009 Brot And Kunst / Famous when Dead Gallery /Melbourne 2009 Group Show / Seyhoun Art Gallery / Tehran 2010 "Public Provocations", Carhartt Gallery – Weil am Rhein, Germany 2012 "Public Provocations", Carhartt Gallery – Weil am Rhein, Germany 2015 " Urban Art Biennale 2015", Voelklingen, Germany 2017 Signs of the Time, Gold Coast City Gallery, Australia

Solo shows 2005 "Alone / Pain Things", Seyhoun Art Gallery, Tehran, IRAN 2006 "October 1385", Mehrin Art Gallery, Tehran, IRAN 2007 "I am Not Political" (private Solo show), Kolahstudio, Tehran, IRAN 2008 "Spray it to the nation", Mehrin Art Gallery, Tehran, IRAN 2010 Ishq, Mathgoth Galerie, Paris, France 2010 Solo Show, Seyhoun Gallery, Tehran, IRAN 2013 The First Sign, Mathgoth Galerie, Paris, France 2019 From another world, S.F. Gallery, Essen, Germany

Publications 2002 Turn the Night / As Author and Translator / The most credible book about the story of Rock and heavy metal music in the Persian language / / Mess Publications IRAN 2007 Street Art and the War on Terror / Rebellion Books/ UK 2008 Young and Defiant in Tehran /University of Pennsylvania Press (PENN) 2008 Arabesque / Die Gestalten Verlag / / Germany 2008 Stencil Nation / / ManicdPress USA 2008 400 ml / Kitchen93 2009 Stickers2 / Die Gestalten verlag /Germany 2009 The Ark / Systems-Design Limited (IDN)/ HongKong 2009 Urban IRAN /Markbatty Publisher/USA 2010 Street Knowledge by King Adz Collins UK/Overlook Press (US) 2011 Graffiti 365 by Jayson Eddin Abrams (1 October 2011) (US)