After graduating from high school, Mohammad-Reza Hajirezaei had wanted to go to Cambridge University. In the chaotic times of the Islamic Revolution, it even looked like the young man from Tehran would realise his dream in 1979. He had been accepted by his dream university in Great Britain. The authorities had also issued him and a friend with the necessary passports. However, he had to return to the authorities to apply for a visa. “I had to prove that I had at least £10,000, but of course I didn’t have that kind of money,” he recalls. As his father, the owner of a small grocery store, was unwilling to support his eldest son or let him go, his dream of studying at Cambridge was shattered.

Today, 46 years later, Mohammad-Reza Hajirezaei is sitting in the IPK Casino in Gatersleben, ready to recount this episode. He did ultimately made it to Europe and has been working at the institute since 1993. After studying biology and completing his doctoral thesis at the University of Bayreuth, a colleague of his supervisor, Mark Stitt, introduced him to the IPK in Gatersleben. “I had applied for a postdoctoral position, but it did not match my interests,” he recalls. “As so often in my life, chance came to my aid,” says the IPK scientist. Immediately after the interview, he met Uwe Sonnewald on campus, who offered him a position shortly afterwards and supported him throughout his scientific career. “I had already worked with some of his transgenic plants during my doctoral thesis. At the IPK, I helped him to build and establish the biochemistry department. He taught me a lot about science, and we became good friends,” says the 66-year-old. After Sonnewald left the IPK in 2004 to move to the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Hajirezaei took over his research group. He later moved to Nicolaus von Wirén’s ‘Molecular Plant Nutrition’ research group, where he remains.

But how did the young Iranian find himself in Germany in the late 1970s, after his dream of studying at Cambridge had been shattered? Once again, chance came to his aid. At a family celebration in Tehran in 1979, he met a fellow Iranian who lived in Germany and offered to help him and provide him with accommodation. Armed with the money he had earned working in an opium factory for a few weeks and a three-month visa, Mohammad-Reza Hajirezaei arrived in Germany for the first time. However, settling into his new surroundings was anything but easy. He initially lived with his compatriot in Mainz and later with a used car dealer in Hamburg. “Then I was accepted to study at the Technical University of Berlin, but unfortunately, I failed the required language test.” When the University of Bayreuth accepted him, however, everything seemed to be going well. “After enrolling at the University of Bayreuth, I flew back to Tehran to visit my family. My father had changed his mind about my plans and was very proud of me.” A few days later, the war between Iraq and Iran began.

“We were trapped. All the airports were closed, so the only way out was by land,” recalls Mohammad-Reza Hajirezaei. He was not alone in his predicament. Many other students who also needed the appropriate permit stood in a long queue in front of the authorities. “One of our group had the idea of collecting all the passports and going straight to the front of the queue.” Together with a small bribe, which they gave to the official in charge, it worked - everyone got the necessary stamp in their passport. “I was also lucky that my father knew a bus operator who was able to get me a seat on a bus.” The long journey over the mountains to Istanbul took two days. “There, I was able to rebook my original ticket and fly back to Germany to continue my studies.” However, Mohammad-Reza Hajirezaei did not see his homeland again for 13 years. “I had trouble finding my way around. Everything had changed, and the war badly scarred the country,” says the 66-year-old. “I was glad and grateful that I didn’t have to live through those terrible years.”

However, he has never severed his connection to his homeland. Mohammad-Reza Hajirezaei maintains this connection through painting. “Initially, I painted illustrations from old Persian poetry books, mostly romantic Oriental motifs,” reports the scientist, who has held dual German and Iranian citizenship for years. These included volumes of poems by Hafiz, one of the most famous Persian poets who lived in the 14th century. “Goethe was also fascinated by his work,” says Mohammad-Reza Hajirezaei. A monument was unveiled in Weimar in 2000, during the Year of Dialogue between Cultures to commemorate the two poets.

Hajirezaei used to paint in black and white. “Then one day, my IPK colleague Hans-Peter Mock told me I should start painting in colour.” Not only did colour come into play, but the German-Iranian also changed his style, choosing colourful and cheerful motifs and taking inspiration from Picasso and Dalí.

“Interest in my paintings has grown steadily, including at the IPK.” With the support of long-standing administrative director Bernd Eise, Hajirezaei could even hold his own exhibition at the institute. For the past two years, the 66-year-old has also been designing colourful mugs. They depict cheerful people with musical instruments, striking faces and birds.

Bernd Eise supported the 66-year-old with the exhibition and the establishment of a start-up company called Bioanalytics Gatersleben in 2018. This IPK spin-off offers its customers various biochemical analyses, including amino acid analysis. “We got off to a good start, but then the pandemic set us back a little,” says Mohammad-Reza Hajirezaei. He is now hoping for a fresh start.

The motivation for his work is always the same, whether it's the company or the IPK. “I want to do things that ultimately help people; that’s my vision,” the researcher affirms. He is currently searching for a dietary sugar substitute and is collaborating with a hydrangea company, among others. But that alone is not enough for him. "I definitely want to organise a second exhibition of my pictures at the institute."