Born in Tehran, in 1972, Golnaz Fathi is an influential member of a currently thriving generation of artists to surface in Iran over the last twenty years.

Whilst studying Graphic Design at Azad University, in Tehran, Fathi became fascinated by the expressive potential of traditional Persian calligraphic forms and immersed herself in a sustained six-year study of traditional calligraphy. She became one of only a tiny handful of women trained to the highest level within that discipline. At this point, Fathi made the conscious decision to fulfil her career as an artist rather than to continue within the privileged world of pure Islamic calligraphy, practised predominantly by male calligraphers.

Fathi investigated ever more abstract forms of representation, using modern media to aid these explorations, whilst still basing her work on fundamental calligraphic practices and techniques. The introduction of bold swatches of colour further emphasised her transition from a codified system based on prescriptive rules to an alternative idiom that gave precedence to her own imaginative modes of subjective expression.

Her solo exhibitions include Golnaz Fathi (2013) at Sundaram Tagore Gallery, New York; Falling Leaves (2013) at the Third Line Gallery, Dubai; Liminal-Subliminal (2010) at October Gallery, London; Beyond Words (2007) at La Fontaine Centre of Contemporary Art, Bahrain. She has received a number of awards including the Best Woman Calligraphist in Ketabat Style in 1995 by the Iranian Society of Calligraphy in Tehran and was chosen as a jury for the Young Global Leader Honoree in 2011 at the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennale. She has also exhibited in museums and galleries in Hong Kong, New York, Paris, Dubai, Korea, Germany and Switzerland.

Fathi's works are in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; The British Museum, London; Brighton & Hove Museum, England; The Devi Art Foundation, New Delhi; The Islamic Arts Museum, Kuala Lumpur; The Asian Civilisations Museum, Singapore and Carnegie Mellon University, Doha. She currently lives and works in Tehran.

Golnaz Fathi has received a number of awards, including the Best Woman Calligraphist in Ketabat Style in 1995 by the Iranian Society of Calligraphy in Tehran. She was a member of the main competition jury of the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennale in 2010, and she was chosen as a Young Global Leader Honoree by the World Economic Forum in 2011. She has also exhibited in museums and galleries around the world, including in Hong Kong, New York, Paris, New Delhi, China, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Germany, and Switzerland.