Gholamhossein Saber

Gholamhossein Saber (; born 1941) is an Iranian artist known for painting, photography, and teaching art. Saber's art spans a wide range of styles from Realism and Expressionism to Impressionism and Post-Impressionism. His primary subject matters are portraits, mostly of ordinary people, and Impressionist landscapes from southern Iran.

Early life and education Saber was born in 1941 in Shiraz, Iran, to Mohammad Hassan and Rezvan Saber. His great-grandfather, Mirza Mehdi Saber, who was contemporary with Mohammad Shah Qajar and Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, was a poet and a calligrapher. He also recounted stories about the great painters, particularly Raphael, Titian, and Rembrandt, inspiring the young student and further fanning the flames of his passion for art. Consequently, the university's central library was going through a major upgrade, acquiring large collections of English books, including a large number of books on visual arts. Saber spent a lot of time in the library, studying the works of the old masters. Gradually, he became acquainted and fascinated with the Impressionists, particularly Monet, and Camille Pissarro.

Career Upon completion of the program in 1965, he was hired as a high school teacher by the Ministry of Education and was transferred to Khoramshahr, a small inland port city on the eastern shore of the Karoun river. The three years he spent in Khorramshahr were very critical in his career development as an Impressionist artist. At the same time, the paintings from that period have a strong Realistic and Expressionist bent and reflect the struggles and the sufferings of the people within the vast and rich landscapes of the South. During the eighties, this disposition towards more vivid and pure colors continues and solidifies into a unique Impressionist and Pointillist style owed as much to the blazing Sun and the dazzling sky of the Fars province.

Teaching art In October 1968, the Ministry of Arts and Culture opened a cultural center on Ferdowsi street in Shiraz. The general director of the ministry in the Fars province, Nasser Kojoori, asked Saber to join as the painting instructor. The center was called the House of Culture Number One . This was the beginning of Saber's secondary arts-related career as a painting teacher. Anyone who showed interest in painting could join the classes. Apart from drawing and painting techniques, the classes included art theory and art history sessions, as well as casual talks and discussions on literature, photography, cinema, and classical music. In 2000, Saber retired from teaching at the public center and with his wife Zahra Entezari opened the Ofogh private art school. He continued teaching there for almost 20 years.

Awards and recognition

Saber was born and lived the first 60 years of his life in a 200-year old heritage building in a historic neighborhood in Shiraz. In 2001, the Fars provincial government purchased this house and 20 of Saber's works in order to turn it into a museum. In 2003 a ceremony was held and the museum was officially opened to the public. Unfortunately this did not last long and within a few years the works were moved to an unknown location and the museum was closed.

In 2019, an official ceremony was held by the Ministry of Islamic Culture and the City of Shiraz to honor Saber's contribution to the Fars province's art and culture. This coincided with unveiling the book on Saber's selected works, "A Paradise of Light and Color", and a postal stamp in the artist's commemoration.

Early works

Impressionist works

Exhibitions Vesal Gallery, Shiraz, Iran, 2019 Meshkinfam Art Museum, Shiraz, Iran, 2005 Group show at Sheikh Art Gallery, Tehran, 1977 Vesal Art Gallery, Shiraz, 1977 Vesal Art Gallery, Shiraz, 1975 Exhibition at Faculty of Literature in Shiraz University, Shiraz, 1963