Youssof Kohzad
Youssof Kohzad (Persian: يوسف كهزاد; also spelled Youssef Kohzad) (born 1935) is an ethnic Tajik writer, painter, playwright, artist, poet, actor, and art consultant from Afghanistan. He has now taken residence in Tracy, California, United States since his emigration from Afghanistan. He is married to Zakia Kohzad. Background. Youssef Kohzad was born in 1935 in the Chendawol district of Kabul, Afghanistan. During his high school years, he wrote plays and created artwork for Kabul Theater. Kohzad graduated from Nejat (Amani) High School in Kabul in 1953. He finished his formal art education from the Academy of Art in  Rome, Italy in 1965. After returning from Italy, he traveled to the former Soviet Union, India and former Eastern Germany to exhibit his art along with other contemporary Afghan artists. Many of his works are showcased in the Middle Eastern Studies museums in Moscow. From 1966-1969 he held executive positions at the Ministry of Media and Culture, in which he was the head of the Fine Arts Department. In 1971 he became the art consultant of Kabul Theater. He wrote eight dramas and all were played on stage. In many of the plays, he played the lead role. In  1975 he returned to the Ministry of Media and Culture and held the position as the president of the ministry until 1992. In 1976, he founded the National Gallery in Kabul, which included 700 paintings, and some work dating back a hundred years. Unfortunately, out of the 700 works of art only 30 remain today. From 1992 until August 2000, Kohzad became a refugee along with his family and was forced to immigrate to India. In August 2000, he moved to the United States and has been residing in Northern California since then. His first art exhibit in the United  States was held in August 2001 in Palo Alto.