Manouchehr Yektai, one of the pioneers of modern Iranian art, was born in Tehran in 1921. Yektai began his studies at Tehran University's Faculty of Fine Arts, but in 1944 he left the university after a disagreement with his teacher, Heydarian. Vishkai, a friend of Manouchehr Yektai, says: "When he was a student in college, he had a fight with his teacher Heidarian. The fight was over a cucumber that was painted in red. Heydarian had asked what is this? He said that there was one red touch missing here! That's why Heydarian kicked him out of the college."

After that he went to America. He participated in a short training course at ozenfant art school and then went to France to study painting in beaux-arts open classes. After one year, he returned to America and studied at the "Student Community" art school. Manouchher Yektai held his first solo exhibition in 1948 at the Woodstock Gallery in New York, and then exhibited his works in Washington, Chicago and Baltimore. The first appearance of Manouchehr Yektai in the auctions dates back to July 2016 at  Dreweatts and Bloomsbury auction house.

Yektai is mainly known for his landscape and still life paintings. In terms of style, his paintings tend towards abstract expressionism and are placed on the narrow border between representation and "action painting". The composition, minimalist look and heavy brushstrokes are the main features of his unique works, which are more evident in his landscapes and still lifes. His art is the product of years of living in France and America. Techniques such as the impromptu combination of colors on the canvas and the use of a spatula instead of a brush represent modernist teachings in unique works, but his choice of colors, subject and look are rooted in Eastern traditions.