Charles-Hossein Zenderoudi, one of the most renowned Iranian calligrapher-painters and a founding figure of the Saqqa-khaneh Movement, was born in 1937. He received his Fine Arts diploma from the Tehran Academy in 1958 and continued his education at the School of Decorative Arts. However, he left the school in 1961 and moved to France to participate in the second Paris Biennial. His debut solo exhibition was held at the Reza Abbasi Hall. In 2001, the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art hosted a retrospective exhibition of his works.
Zenderoudi's early artistic endeavors were characterized by surrealism. Following these efforts, he paid special attention to visual symbols from popular and religious culture, creating works that became known as "Saqqa-khaneh." In Europe, he became acquainted with the Lettrism movement and began experimenting with calligraphy through the repetition of letters and words in monochromatic and colorful compositions. In another period, he filled the surfaces of his works with an abundance of small numbers and words, blurring the lines between calligraphy and painting. Zenderoudi has also produced works using handprint techniques during various phases of his career.
The esteemed French critic Pierre Restany wrote about Zenderoudi's work: "Zenderoudi's flexibility in conveying his message has allowed him to create a cultural niche for himself throughout different periods of his career, always maintaining his originality and modernity in a unique way. After Saqqa-khaneh, he embraced Parisian Informel and Lettrism, prioritizing calligraphic symbols over traditional methods, thereby transforming these symbols to enhance their utility."