California-inspired Sabzi represents beauty in the abstract: Iranian-born abstractionist blends his passion for the spiritual and the beauty of women with Western and Eastern philosophies.

"When asked how I became a painter, I think about the warmth of family gatherings, where so many layers of art fused together to shape my life's desire and purpose. It is no wonder my brother and I have carved our paths in the arts," says Sabzi, the renowned Iranian-born figurative-abstract painter

"Sitting in my sun-filled studio in my home in Thousand Oaks, CA," he continues, "my memories return to my childhood and youth in Ahwaz in Southern Iran. The piercingly luminous sun forces me to recall daily the family gathering we regularly held on Friday, the Persian Sabbath, in our home. The days slid gently by with plenty of food and activities into the evening when my uncle would begin to play the violin as a prelude to an evening of poetry recitals and singing, in a space painted and designed by the many rugs and textiles woven by my mother."

Sabzi started painting at the age of 12, inspired by his uncle's music, shaping his future as a painter-musician. "My father, who was a chef, was a magnificent cook. He always prepared the food for our gatherings, but his heart was in poetry and he lived to read good poems."

Sabzi's love of the arts continued as he pressured his mother to buy him a …