Born in 1976 in Tehran, Ali Banisadr moved to America when he was a child. His works are influenced by his experiences as a refugee from the IranIraq war and his approach to abstraction mixes memory, nostalgia and violence. He is best known for his large, lush, highly intricate paintings featuring fantastical landscapes reminiscent of stained glass. Ali experiences synaesthesia, a condition which shapes his perception of the world, and a dimension of his work.

His work can be seen in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Museum der Moderna in Salzburg, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles and the British Museum.