Persian calligraphy enters painting in two ways. In classical Persian painting, verses written in nastaliq, the flowing script that developed in Iran in the 14th century and became the script of Persian poetry, share the page with the picture and are planned as part of it. In modern Iranian art from the 1960s onward, painters and sculptors made letters and words the subject of the work itself, from the Saqqakhaneh artists who filled canvases with signs and pseudo-scripts to the naqqashi-khat, or painting-calligraphy, movement, whose trained calligraphers wrote poetry across large canvases in oil. The Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art calls calligraphy one of the most revered artistic achievements of the Islamic world.
This page explains how nastaliq developed and who its masters were, what a siah-mashq practice sheet is, and how modern artists such as Charles Hossein Zenderoudi, Parviz Tanavoli and Mohammad Ehsai turned writing into image. It is part of our guide to contemporary Iranian and Persian painting.
Key takeaways
- The Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art says a new script called naskh-i ta'liq, later shortened to nasta'liq, emerged c. 1350 and was used throughout the Persian-speaking world by 1430.
- Sixteenth-century sources credit Mir Ali Tabrizi, active c. 1370 to 1410, with inventing nastaliq, and the Encyclopaedia Iranica says he at least gave the script its definitive shape.
- A siah-mashq is a practice sheet on which a calligrapher wrote rows of letters, and the Encyclopaedia Iranica says practice sheets by leading masters were reproduced in treatises on calligraphy.
- Charles Hossein Zenderoudi's paintings shown at the Third Tehran Biennial in 1962 mark the official birth of the Saqqakhaneh school, according to the critic Karim Emami as cited in the Encyclopaedia Iranica.
- At Christie's Dubai on 30 April 2008, Zenderoudi's Tchaar-Bagh sold for $1.6 million and Mohammad Ehsai's He is the Merciful for $1.1 million, according to The Art Newspaper.
What nastaliq is
Nastaliq is the main script of Persian handwriting and calligraphy. The Encyclopaedia Iranica entry by Gholam-Hosayn Yusofi explains that it combined two older scripts, the balanced naskh and the flowing ta'liq, and that its name comes from joining theirs. Its letters are mostly round: only one third to one sixth of the strokes are straight, and the round strokes slope downward from right to left. The Iranica says it is easy to read, can be written quickly and fits a lot of text into few lines.
The Smithsonian's exhibition text says the script's "sinuous lines, short vertical strokes, and astonishing sense of rhythm" made it well suited for copying Persian verse. The Iranica entry on the Isfahan school says nastaliq was reserved for poetry across the Persian-speaking world from the early 15th century. That is why it appears in the text panels of illustrated manuscripts: the Metropolitan Museum of Art says the 759 pages of text in the Shahnameh made for Shah Tahmasp are written in "superb nasta'liq script".
How nastaliq developed, and its masters
The Smithsonian's 2014 to 2015 exhibition Nasta'liq: The Genius of Persian Calligraphy told the script's story through four masters, whose dates are given in the table below. Two regional styles grew up, according to the Iranica: an eastern or Khorasani style, refined in Herat, and a western style used at the Aq Qoyunlu court. The eastern style became the nastaliq used in Iran today.
Master calligraphers of nastaliq and their dates
| Calligrapher |
Dates |
Role in the script's history |
Source |
| Mir Ali Tabrizi |
Active c. 1370 to 1410 (Smithsonian); the Iranica calligraphy entry gives his death as 1446 or 1447 |
Credited with inventing nastaliq; gave it its definitive shape |
Smithsonian; Encyclopaedia Iranica |
| Sultan Ali Mashhadi |
Died 1520 |
Brought the script to its classical form |
Smithsonian |
| Mir Ali Haravi |
Died c. 1550 |
Known for large single-sheet pieces of poetry |
Smithsonian |
| Mir Emad al-Hasani |
Died 1615 |
"The most celebrated calligrapher of nasta'liq"; considered its unequalled master |
Smithsonian; Encyclopaedia Iranica |
| Mirza Mohammad-Reza Kalhor |
1829 to 1892 or 1893 |
A leading master of the 19th-century revival |
Encyclopaedia Iranica |
The Encyclopaedia Iranica entry by Priscilla Soucek on Mir Ali Tabrizi says the only known manuscript in his hand is a copy of Nizami's Khosrow and Shirin now in the Freer Gallery in Washington. The Iranica calligraphy entry adds that the use of nastaliq declined in the 20th century and revived after the Second World War, when large numbers of people began taking lessons, "mainly at classes run by the Anjoman-e Khoshnevisan-e Iran", the Association of Persian Calligraphers, which has branches in all the main towns.
Calligraphy as a fine art
A fine page of calligraphy was a work of art in its own right. The Smithsonian's exhibition text explains that from the second half of the 15th century, calligraphers enlarged their letters, experimented with their placement and refined their flourishes to make bold single sheets with a few lines of poetry, and that "the visual essence of nasta'liq ultimately became as important as the text itself". Students learned from a master over many years, and lineages of masters and pupils were recorded in treatises.
These single sheets went into albums beside paintings. The Iranica entry on the Isfahan school says drawings and paintings of the 17th century were assembled in albums "together with calligraphic examples", and that, like calligraphy, the images were valued for their technical skill as much as their subject. The Iranica calligraphy entry adds that joining a fine verse in nastaliq with a painted illustration or an illuminated background can produce beautiful works of art.
Siah-mashq: the practice sheet as art
Siah-mashq means "black practice". The Encyclopaedia Iranica defines siah-mashq sheets as pages on which a calligrapher wrote rows of letters and letter combinations for practice, usually in nastaliq or its broken, faster form, shekasteh-nastaliq. Because a siah-mashq shows skill and often has "a pleasing appearance and sometimes displays virtuosity", practice sheets by leading masters were reproduced in treatises on calligraphy. The related sar-mashq is a model sheet a teacher gives a pupil to copy.
The Smithsonian's exhibition showed a related case. On one sheet, the master Sultan Ali Mashhadi signed with mashaqahu, a word that suggests a practice piece or an exercise, in place of the traditional katabahu, which signals a finished achievement. The Asia Society says the modern painter Mohammad Ehsai built "large-scale rhythmic compositions referencing mashq calligraphic exercises".
Calligraphy inside the painting
In a Persian miniature, the verses are part of the design. Kamal al-Din Ghotb, a painter in our gallery who works in the classical tradition, places nastaliq verse inside his compositions. The product page for his Siyavash Passing Through the Fire describes an illuminated arch whose "band of nasta'liq verse" is set in white cloud-shaped spaces on gold, with cartouches of Persian verse along the foot of the page. His Muraqqa': The Blue Robe sets a musician in a blue robe among couplets in nastaliq and a gold-ground calligraphy panel pressed with oval seals. Our page on Persian miniature painting explains the album tradition behind it.
The modern turn: letters as images
The Saqqakhaneh artists
In the early 1960s, Tehran artists began to use writing in a new way. The Met's essay on the Saqqakhaneh movement says two of its first artists, Hossein Zenderoudi and Faramarz Pilaram, "both used text as a point of departure", drawing on everyday sources such as talismanic spells and using letters and numbers as decoration across the background, so that the characters lost their meaning as words. The Encyclopaedia Iranica entry by Hamid Keshmirshekan reports the critic Karim Emami's view that the showing of Zenderoudi's canvases at the Third Tehran Biennial in 1962 marks "the official birth" of the Saqqakhaneh school. Our history of modern Iranian art covers the movement as a whole.
Charles Hossein Zenderoudi
Zenderoudi left Iran for France in 1961 and continued his career in Paris, according to the Iranica. His later paintings use pseudo-scripts, invented letter-like signs valued for their visual form, and the Iranica suggests Paris lettrism, an avant-garde movement based on letters, as a possible influence. The Museum of Modern Art in New York holds his K+L+32+H+4. Mon père et moi (My Father and I) of 1962, in felt-tip pen, coloured ink, crayon and metallic paint on paper on board.
Faramarz Pilaram
The Asia Society's Iran Modern exhibition text says Pilaram was not a trained calligrapher, and that his later works "focus exclusively on the aesthetic possibilities of script". The Iranica entry on him gives his dates as 1937 to 1983; the Met gives 1937 to 1982.
Parviz Tanavoli and Heech
The sculptor Parviz Tanavoli made a single word into a series of sculptures. The Met says he began his heech sculptures in the early 1960s, that heech is the Persian word for "nothing", and that the works are rooted in Rumi's mystical poetry and the Sufi belief that God creates everything from nothing. The Iranica calls heech "a Persian allegory" pointing to a mystical condition beyond nothingness.
Naqqashi-khat: painting-calligraphy
A second group came from inside the calligraphic tradition. The Asia Society describes the naqqashi-khat movement as made up of "classically trained calligraphers who exclusively used text in their works", while their large compositions and oil on canvas set them apart from traditional calligraphy. Their texts included the poets Hafez and Rumi and passages from the Qur'an. The Asia Society describes Mohammad Ehsai's work as "flat forms composed of pure color", and Reza Mafi's as including calligraphic compositions and shaped canvases inspired by Persian tilework.
Their work also reached high prices at auction. The Art Newspaper reported that at Christie's Dubai on 30 April 2008, Ehsai's He is the Merciful of 2007 sold for $1.1 million against an estimate of $100,000 to $150,000, and Zenderoudi's Tchaar-Bagh of 1981 sold for $1.6 million, with three works by Zenderoudi among the top ten lots.
Calligraphic gesture in our gallery
Two painters we work with have artist pages that mention calligraphy. On her artist page, the gallery describes Melina Ghaemi as an Iranian-Canadian abstract expressionist and lists "Persian calligraphic gesture" among her inspirations, beside Joan Mitchell and Helen Frankenthaler. Her technique includes gestural abstraction, impasto, dripping and palette knife in acrylic, oil and mixed media. The page for Roshan says her Tree of Life motif recurs "in abstracted, almost calligraphic variations", and lists Sufi poetry and Persian miniature painting among her inspirations. For what the tree and other recurring images mean, see our page on symbols in Persian painting.
Frequently asked questions
What is nastaliq?
Nastaliq is the flowing script used for Persian handwriting and calligraphy, formed by combining the older naskh and ta'liq scripts. The Encyclopaedia Iranica says only one third to one sixth of its strokes are straight. The Smithsonian says it emerged c. 1350 and was used throughout the Persian-speaking world by 1430.
Who invented nastaliq?
Mir Ali Tabrizi, a calligrapher active c. 1370 to 1410, is credited with inventing nastaliq by 16th-century Persian sources. The Encyclopaedia Iranica doubts he invented it outright but says it is certain he systematized the script and gave it its definitive shape. His only known manuscript is in the Freer Gallery.
Why was nastaliq used for poetry?
Nastaliq was used for poetry because its sinuous lines, short vertical strokes and rhythm suited Persian verse, according to the Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art. The Encyclopaedia Iranica says the script was reserved for poetry across the Persian-speaking world from the early 15th century, and it fills the text panels of illustrated manuscripts.
Who was Mir Emad?
Mir Emad al-Hasani was a calligrapher from Qazvin who died in 1615 and is considered the unequalled master of nastaliq. The Smithsonian calls him "the most celebrated calligrapher of nasta'liq", and the Encyclopaedia Iranica says his monumental nastaliq moves from broad, fluid strokes to razor-sharp lines with complete control.
What is a siah-mashq?
A siah-mashq is a calligrapher's practice sheet, covered with rows of letters and letter combinations, usually in nastaliq. The Encyclopaedia Iranica says a siah-mashq often has a pleasing appearance and sometimes shows virtuosity, so practice sheets by leading masters were reproduced in treatises on calligraphy. The name means black practice.
What is naqqashi-khat?
Naqqashi-khat, or painting-calligraphy, is a modern Iranian movement of classically trained calligraphers who made large works using only text, in oil on canvas. The Asia Society says their texts came from the poets Hafez and Rumi and from the Qur'an. Mohammad Ehsai and Reza Mafi are among its artists.
Who is Mohammad Ehsai?
Mohammad Ehsai is a calligrapher and painter of the naqqashi-khat movement, whose work the Asia Society describes as flat forms of pure colour in large rhythmic compositions that refer to mashq practice exercises. The Art Newspaper reported that his He is the Merciful sold for $1.1 million at Christie's Dubai in 2008.
How did Charles Hossein Zenderoudi use letters?
Charles Hossein Zenderoudi used letters and invented pseudo-scripts as pure visual forms, according to the Encyclopaedia Iranica, which suggests Paris lettrism as a possible influence. His canvases at the Third Tehran Biennial in 1962 are seen as the birth of the Saqqakhaneh school, and MoMA holds his K+L+32+H+4 of 1962.
What does heech mean in Parviz Tanavoli's sculptures?
Heech is the Persian word for "nothing", and Parviz Tanavoli began making sculptures of the word in the early 1960s. The Metropolitan Museum of Art says the heech works are rooted in Rumi's poetry and the Sufi belief that God creates everything from nothing, shown sitting on chairs, emerging from cages or wrapping a poet.
Was Faramarz Pilaram a trained calligrapher?
Faramarz Pilaram was a painter without calligraphic training, according to the Asia Society's Iran Modern exhibition text. He used stylized letters and words with other abstract forms, and his later works focused only on the visual possibilities of script. The Encyclopaedia Iranica gives his dates as 1937 to 1983.
How is Persian calligraphy taught today?
Persian calligraphy is taught today mainly in classes run by the Anjoman-e Khoshnevisan-e Iran, the Association of Persian Calligraphers, which has branches in all the main towns, according to the Encyclopaedia Iranica. The Smithsonian describes the older method, in which a pupil learned the style from a master over years of guided practice.
How does Persian calligraphy appear in VanArtHub paintings?
Persian calligraphy appears in VanArtHub paintings through the work of painters such as Melina Ghaemi, whose artist page lists Persian calligraphic gesture among her inspirations, and Roshan, whose Tree of Life motif recurs in almost calligraphic variations. Kamal al-Din Ghotb places nastaliq verse inside his classical miniatures, such as Muraqqa': The Blue Robe.
References
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CALLIGRAPHY. Gholam-Hosayn Yusofi, Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 15 December 1990; Internet Archive copy of 3 September 2026. Accessed 26 September 2026. The origin and rules of nastaliq, Mir Ali Tabrizi's role and death date, the two regional styles, Mir Emad, Kalhor, the post-war revival and the Anjoman classes, siah-mashq and sar-mashq, and calligraphy joined with painting.
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ALI TABRIZI (calligrapher). Priscilla P. Soucek, Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 15 December 1985; Internet Archive copy of 29 August 2026. Accessed 26 September 2026. The credit given to Mir Ali Tabrizi and his only known manuscript, in the Freer Gallery.
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Nasta'liq: The Genius of Persian Calligraphy. Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art. Exhibition 13 September 2014 to 3 May 2015; Internet Archive copy of 9 November 2025. Accessed 26 September 2026. The emergence of the script c. 1350, its spread by 1430, its fit with Persian verse, the four masters and their dates, single sheets, teaching and Sultan Ali's signature habit.
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ISFAHAN xi. School of Painting and Calligraphy. Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 15 December 2007; Internet Archive copy of 5 December 2025. Accessed 26 September 2026. Nastaliq reserved for poetry, Mir Emad as its unequalled master, and albums of paintings and calligraphy.
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The Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp (Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History). Francesca Leoni, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Published June 2008; Internet Archive copy of 25 December 2024. Accessed 26 September 2026. The 759 text pages in nastaliq script.
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Artists of the Saqqakhana Movement (Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History). Maryam Ekhtiar and Julia Rooney, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Published April 2014; Internet Archive copy of 16 December 2024. Accessed 26 September 2026. Zenderoudi and Pilaram's use of text, and Pilaram's dates as given by the Met.
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SAQQA-KANA ii. School of Art (English: saqqakhaneh, a public water fountain). Hamid Keshmirshekan, Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 15 August 2009; Internet Archive copy of 25 May 2025. Accessed 26 September 2026. Emami's dating of the school's birth to the 1962 Biennial, Zenderoudi's move to Paris in 1961 and his pseudo-scripts, and the meaning of heech.
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PILARAM, FARAMARZ. Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 1 August 2014; Internet Archive copy of 25 November 2025. Accessed 26 September 2026. Pilaram's dates of 1937 to 1983.
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Iran Modern. Asia Society Museum. Published 2013. Accessed 26 September 2026. Pilaram's lack of calligraphic training, the naqqashi-khat movement, and the work of Mohammad Ehsai and Reza Mafi.
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Charles Hossein Zenderoudi. K+L+32+H+4. Mon père et moi (My Father and I). 1962. The Museum of Modern Art. Undated; Internet Archive copy of 5 September 2026. Accessed 26 September 2026. The title, date and medium of the work in MoMA's collection.
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Parviz Tanavoli, Poet Turning Into Heech. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Undated; Internet Archive copy of 6 March 2026. Accessed 26 September 2026. The heech sculptures, their start in the early 1960s and their roots in Rumi and Sufi thought.
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Iranian artists triumph at Christie's Dubai as contemporary market hits its stride. The Art Newspaper. Published 1 June 2008. Accessed 26 September 2026. The prices for Ehsai's He is the Merciful and Zenderoudi's Tchaar-Bagh, and Zenderoudi's three top-ten lots.
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Siyavash Passing Through the Fire: Original Persian Miniature in Oil and Gold by Kamal al-Din Ghotb. VanArtHub. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The nastaliq verse arch and cartouches in the painting.
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Muraqqa': The Blue Robe, Original Persian Miniature in Oil and Gold by Kamal al-Din Ghotb. VanArtHub. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The nastaliq couplets and calligraphy panel in the painting.
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Melina Ghaemi. VanArtHub. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The gallery's description of her, her technique and her inspirations.
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Roshan. VanArtHub. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The gallery's description of the Tree of Life motif and her inspirations.
Checked 26 September 2026. If something here is out of date, write to us and we will correct it.
