Davood Roostaei, the magical artist from the Orient, was born in the Persian town of Sarab in 1959. After years of pursuit, prosecution and imprisonment in Iran he fled the country in 1984.
Germany, Monte Carlo and Los Angles became his new homes. Since then Roostaei has acquired international fame as the founder of "Cryptorealism"
Roostaei is a philanthropist and a champion of causes and has donated the proceeds of some of his most sought after paintings to the charities he most deeply believes in. This support has provided assistance for causes such as the children of Chernobyl, children hurt in accidents and suffering from vascular disease, AIDS assistance programs, and the hospice movement. In 2000 he dedicated the profits of his painting "Light & Shadow" bought by the city of Hamburg for $300,000 to the city's orphanage.
He paints solely with bare fingers and his art necessitates new forms of exhibition - distance, illumination and viewing angles. Roostaei always emphasizes that his paintings do not only deal with the visually perceptible appearance. "The artist should not only paint his models'bodies, but has to try to express the person's soul," states Roostaei.
Roostaei is the recipient of many awards including the Diamond Award, Ambassador Award given by the Jewish Federation and The Golden Youth Revolution in Visual Arts Award. Roostaei also received an honorary doctorate degree of Philosophy in Healing Arts from the University of California, Los Angeles and has served an appointment as a professor for the University. He is a virtuoso, a great Arabian thinker, and a talent of the century. For images of Davood Roostaei's work please visit www.davoodroostaei.com or www.shop.traderix.com
