He married his first wife, actress Shohreh Vaziri-Tabar, aka Shohreh Aghdashloo, in 1972. They divorced in 1979. After the revolution of 1979, Aghdashloo lost both his official jobs and was under threat and was barred from leaving for over 10 years, until 1989. Aghdashloo’s interest in the arts developed early, and he moved to Tehran in his youth to pursue formal education. He studied at the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Tehran but left before completing his degree. Nevertheless, his deep engagement with classical Persian art, Western painting techniques, and historical themes laid the foundation for a rich and reflective body of work.
Aghdashloo had to adjust himself to the new strict rules imposed by the government to control and arts and culture. Before being allowed to teach in universities in 1981, he started his private art classes which he still continues to teach, beside lecturing in a number of universities. He married Firouzeh Athari in 1981 from which they have a son and a daughter. Aghdashloo is best known for his “Memories of Destruction” series, where he presents decaying artworks and classical objects as symbols of lost grandeur, cultural erosion, and the passage of time. His paintings often juxtapose Renaissance imagery with Persian miniatures, creating a dialogue between East and West, past and present.
