Bijan Dowlatshahi
Persian Number Game, 1969
Exploring writing as a visual language in Persian Number Game, Dowlatshahi uses letterlike symbols to form boldly colored patterns across the painting’s surface. Born in Tehran, the artist trained under Parviz Tanavoli. Through a meeting with Abby Grey in Tehran, Dowlatshahi received a scholarship to the Minnesota College of Art and Design (MCAD), and he moved to Minneapolis in 1968. At MCAD, he was mentored by Siah Armajani; Persian Number Game reflects both Armajani’s text-based techniques and Dowlashati’s own father’s poetry and calligraphy.