Mohammad Ehsaie (b. 1939), “Mana”, porcelain, signed with initials ME (recto) and inscribed ME Ehsaie for Stephano Ricci (verso), 21cm. diameter; circa 2010, manufactured by Stephano Ricci edition of 20Mohammad Ehsaie is undoubtedly one of the most gifted calligraphers to emerge from Iran within the past century. Utterly devoted the perfection of his craft, Ehsaie has married the technical finesse of his formal training within a modern visual schema. Traditional Persian calligraphy has historically been rife with ornament and embellishment; with calligraphic texts often accompanied by miniature paintings, encased in cartouches and flanked by a myriad of geometrical and floral motifs. Ehsaie's approach to the craft, however, is markedly divergent, and in choosing the pure architecture of the Persian letterform as his principal subject matter, he relinquishes the visual excess of traditional manuscript art. The depiction of unadorned script against a monochromatic, often black background not only shifts the focus of the viewer onto the mechanics and minutia of the letterform, but forces the writing to compensate for the now absent decorative elements. Ehsaie's text fills the empty spaces with a newfound freedom, taking lifelike, prehensile shapes as Ehsai demonstrates the suppleness and elasticity of Persian nast’aliq. Ultimately, Ehsai's contorted letter forms are not written to be understood, emphasizing the ineffability of the deity itself.Please refer to department for condition report