Hailing from Iran, Marjan Motavvef began painting and pursuing her passion for art when she moved to Singapore. In 2008, she obtained a certificate from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) in Western Oil Painting. Apart from her interest in art, Marjan also holds a Bachelor of Science from the Isfahan Medical University, Iran. 

She takes pride in weaving insightful messages and nuanced observations into her work and is proficient in both the arts and sciences. Inspired by culture, family and traditions that she has witnessed first-hand, Marjan’s drawings and paintings, which employ a combination of oil painting and mixed media techniques, aim to showcase Persian painting styles to people across the globe. Persian art also referred to as Iranian art, is an art form of many mediums, including painting, pottery, sculpture, metalworking, calligraphy, weaving, and architecture. 

‘Cheerful’, an artwork inspired by her daughter, is one of Marjan’s most well-received paintings. The happiness of Marjan’s daughter is what inclined her to depict a Turkman scarf featuring a traditional, elaborate design in her painting. The colour red holds a lot of meaning to the artists as it symbolizes energy and life. The piece also uses a specific background design coated with shellac ink, which makes the piece shine at night. Shellac is a resin secreted by a bug from tree trunks in Asia.  

Marjan was among the top 20 artists in the AAC 2017 Online Art Contest. She had previously exhibited her works in the Singapore Art Gallery under ArtSafe Pte Ltd and Tatinis Art Show in Singapore.