Ardeshir Mohassess is an Iranian designer, illustrator and cartoonist who became famous for his critical attitude in creating artworks.
Ardeshir Mohassess has been interested in visual arts since adolescence. At the age of 12 he went to Tehran and completed his primary education in literature, and by continuing his studies in law, he pursued his father's job as a judge; But after a short time, he quit and started working seriously and professionally as an illustrator. Mohasses started designing for the "Book of the Week '' in the late 1930s and then collaborated with other publications such as Kayhan, Ettela'at, Ayandegan and Negin. The publication of his works in various magazines attracted the attention of critics in a new form of cartoon in Iran. Eventually, fame spread abroad, and Mohasses' work eventually published in magazines such as the New York Times and Young Africa. He continued his career in the United States and held numerous exhibitions abroad.
Ardeshir Mohassess first appearance in the auctions dates back to 2009 (June 2009) at the Christie's Auction House. By 2022, his works have been in 98 domestic and foreign auctions and 75% of his works have been sold in international auctions. His most expensive work until 2021 was hammered at the Christie's auction for $32,000 in March 2015.
Mohasses was one of the artists who was able to create a new perspective on cartoons in Iran. When other cartoonists were often concerned with superficial issues, he addressed more serious and important issues in his illustrations and cartoons. One of Mohassess main sources was photographs of the events of the Qajar Dynasty, from which he drew with his own humor. In most of his works, Mohssess depicted the pain and suffering hidden in everyday life, and vibrant, smooth and sometimes geometric lines were the main features of his works.
Davood Shahidi, a cartoonist, said about Ardeshir Mohasses: "He was a global artist and was able to stand out among the greats of world art history. Ardeshir continuously presented the theory of graphic humor and because of his love for Iranian history, he expressed the problems of Iran in his works and revived the Qajar dynasty in his designs, both in terms of intellectual content and form, painting and graphics. "In drawing art, Mohasses approached the field of humor and promoted Iranian with his works."