Wahed Khakdan, a distinguished Iranian painter and a significant figure in contemporary Iranian art, has passed away at the age of 75 in Tehran. The Iranian Painters Association confirmed his death in an official statement released on Thursday, October 23.
Born in 1950 in Tehran, Khakdan studied at the Tehran School of Fine Arts and later graduated from the Faculty of Decorative Arts with a degree in Interior Architecture in 1976. In the early 1980s, he emigrated to Germany, where he continued his artistic career and exhibited his works internationally.
Khakdan was best known for his hyperrealist style. His paintings often depicted simple, everyday objects—chairs, bottles, boxes, or worn household items—rendered with striking precision and quiet emotional depth. Through his art, these objects transcended their ordinary nature, becoming meditations on reality, time, and human perception. His canvases, defined by their calm stillness and masterful use of light, invited viewers to contemplate the hidden meanings of familiar forms.
Khakdan held his first solo exhibition in 1974 at Seyhoun Gallery in Tehran, marking the beginning of a long and influential career. His works were later shown in numerous exhibitions inside and outside Iran and were sold at major international auctions, earning him recognition among collectors and art institutions worldwide.
Following his death, the Iranian Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, as well as Aydin Mahdizadeh, Director General of Visual Arts, issued official statements of condolence to his family, students, and the Iranian art community. In Mahdizadeh’s message, he described Khakdan as “a contemplative and nostalgic artist whose works were filled with invisible beauty and inner reflection,” adding that “the passing of such masters is like the extinguishing of a light that joins eternal brightness.”
Wahed Khakdan was among the rare painters who bridged visual art with philosophical inquiry. He often stated that “painting must rise from life itself, not from imitation of it.”
According to the Iranian Painters Association, his funeral and burial will take place in Tehran in a private ceremony.
Wahed Khakdan, the painter of silence and speaking objects, will remain an enduring presence in the history of Iranian art.
