Original Etching 'Portrait' by Aliraza Espahbod 1951-2007. Artists Proof V/VI. Signed and Dated 1977. Provenance; Charles Lloyd, Art Tutor at Goldsmiths College

One of the important Iranian painters of the 20th C. whose work is in many public galleries and institutions. This work was one of a number of students work collected by Charles Lloyd B.1930, Painter and printmaker who taught Espahbod at Goldsmiths. Alireza Espahbod, painter, designer, and contemporary graphic artist, was born in the Shapour neighborhood of Tehran. At 17, Espahbod entered Tehran Boys Fine Arts High School and began studying painting. In 1975, he studied painting at the University of Decorative Arts. Then he moved to England to continue his studies and received a master's degree from Goldsmith University. In 1975, his first solo exhibition, "Crows," was held at Seyhoun Gallery. This gallery hosted the last exhibition of this artist during his lifetime in 2004. The works in this show, called "Ensan-e-Alefba," were dedicated to Iran's poets, writers, and journalists. The motifs of most of Alireza Espahbod's paintings are scared people, women in white, crows, and nostalgic trees. Espahbod's deep social concerns were reflected in his works. He said about his endless interest in painting: "The only thing I love passionately and out of commitment is painting and looking at reality in the open field of seeing and understanding what it wants to hide with all its openness." Espahbod passed away in March 2007 due to a heart problem. Among the most famous works of Espahbod, we can mention the design of the fixed cover of Ahmed Shamlou's collection of poems and the illustrations of the "Ketab-e-Jom'eh" magazine.