Born in Iran in 1963, Khosrow Hassanzadeh lives and works in Tehran as a full-time visual artist and actor. In 1991, he completed his academic training in painting at Mojtama-e-Honar University and later studied Persian Literature at Azad University from 1995 to 1999. First gaining international stardom in 1998 with his War series of acrylic on paper, which documented his experiences as a volunteer soldier during the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988), he has exhibited in the Middle East, Europe, Asia and the United States. Hassanzadeh’s paintings and mixed media works are held in the collections of the British Museum, the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, the World Bank and the Tropenmuseum. In 2007, Saqi Books (London, Beirut) published, Tehran Studio Works: the Art of Khosrow Hassanzadeh, one of its few monographs on an Iranian artist.
In addition to well-known silk screens that often explore the dynamism of Iranian visual culture as it relates to the country’s complex history and heightened political arena, he has gained critical acclaim for his 'Ready to Order' series of mixed media light boxes. Exploring the concept of martyrdom, popular culture and the mass production of religious imagery, these three-dimensional works are layered with objects and photographs, portraying Middle Eastern divas like Oum Kalthoum, Fairuz and Googoosh, while also paying homage to everyday superstars such as the artist’s mother.