Parvaneh Etemadi

• Name — Parvaneh Etemadi • Native Name — پروانه اعتمادی • Other Names — Parvaneh E'temadi • Born — 25 February 1948 • Birthplace — Tehran, Iran • Died — 21 March 2025 • Education — University of Tehran • Occupation — Visual artist, painter, collagist, draftsperson, printmaker • Spouse — Ruyin Pakbaz

Parvaneh Etemadi was born on 25 February 1948 in Tehran, and she was raised in Birjand in South Khorasan province, Iran. She attended the University of Tehran in the College of Fine Arts, but did not graduate. She was mentored in painting under Bahman Mohasses, and is considered his only direct student.

Her first solo exhibition was in 1969 at Ghandriz Gallery in Tehran; and between 1967 and 1977, she regularly showed her work there alongside other artists working in the modernism movement. She publicly said she did not like to be labeled as a 'woman artist' or as a 'feminist artist', and believed her work resonates more with the, "agony and ecstasy of poetry". In 2019, Tarrahan Azad Gallery in Tehran held a retrospective of her work. In her book Good Morning... Good Night. Cinque artiste e una curatrice dall'Iran, Iranian curator Tarlan Rafiee offers an exploration of Etemadi's artistic journey. She delves into Etemadi's renowned “cement works,” highlighting how these pieces reflect the artist's personal experiences and surroundings. Rafiee emphasizes Etemadi's unique perspective as a female artist in Iran, noting her ability to authentically portray her world without comparison to male counterparts: “Parvaneh Etemadi, born in Tehran in 1947, is a seminal Iranian artist known for her intimate, autobiographical works. Her celebrated ‘cement works’—nudes and still lifes etched onto cement-coated panels—embody a deeply feminine vision that defied the male-dominated art scene of pre-revolutionary Iran. Eschewing comparison with male peers, Etemadi’s art reflects a lifelong exploration of womanhood, memory, and domestic space. Her post-revolution collages and drawings, often incorporating personal photographs, evoke a nostalgic yet critical gaze.” Her group exhibition history spans three decades and multiple continents, including participation in the International Art Fair in Basel, Switzerland (1976), a group exhibition at Cité des Arts in Paris (1978), and a presentation of Contemporary Iranian Art at Foxley/Leach Gallery in Washington D.C. (1978). She also participated in an exhibition of Iranian art in Beijing and Shanghai (1978). Etemadi sat in front of Bahman Kiarostami's camera for eight months to film a documentary about her named, Parvaneh (2020).