Mokarrameh Ghanbari

Mokarrameh Ghanbari (born in 1928 – died October 24, 2005) was an Iranian self-taught painter who won several international art awards. She started painting at the age of 61 in 1991.

Biography
Mokarrameh was born in 1928 in the Darikhaneh village in the northern Mazandaran Province of Iran, and despite her talent, she never received any formal training in painting.

Work
She began painting at the age of 61, when she came across some artist's paintings which her son had left at her home. She continued her painting using bright, original colors inspired by the beautiful natural surroundings of her neighborhood, and within a few years her works were noticed by painters in Iran and overseas.

She held her first exhibition at the Seyhun Gallery in Tehran in 1995. The artist also participated in ten other exhibitions and was awarded the jury prize at the Roshd Film Festival and another award at the Rural Artistic-Literary Festival. In 2001, she was awarded an honorary certificate at the Conference of the Foundation of Iranian Women's Studies in Stockholm, Sweden and was named the year's exemplary woman.

In addition, she was named the "Female Painter of 2001" by the Swedish National Museum.

Death and legacy
She died on October 24, 2005, at the age of 77, and is buried in the courtyard of her house in Iran. Her house is decorated with paintings by Ghanbari and is a registered art museum by the Iran Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization (ICHHTO).

Iranian filmmaker Ebrahim Mokhtari released in 2002 a documentary film about the life and works of the artist entitled, Mokarrameh, Her Memories and Dreams.