Davood Roostaei
Davood Roostaei (born 1959 in Sarab, Iran) is a painter and founder of Cryptorealism, currently living in Los Angeles.
In 1974, Davood Roostaei received an award as a miniaturist. In 1977, he finished high school and began studying art at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Tehran. In 1981, he traveled to Egypt, India, and Russia on a cultural tour. That year he was persecuted politically and placed in detention in Iran. In 1984, he resumed his studies in Cologne.
Roostaei had his first solo exhibitions in 1988, in Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Hanover and Cologne. In 1990, his art was recognized as Cryptorealism. Between 1994 and 2012, he exhibited around the world, including in Berlin, Hamburg, Bonn, Frankfurt, Dubai, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Paris, Monaco, Rome and Nîmes France. He then took a sabbatical until August 2013, when he announced the launch of Cryptorealism—the New Chapter.
His late-20th century paintings evoking the unity of religions have been called "practically visionary".