10 Contemporary Artists From Iraq You Should Know
Ruba Asfahani
23 October 2016
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Over the last decade, Iraq’s rich history of art
has been sidelined and overshadowed by the focus on politics, war and
destruction. However, with powerful figureheads such as Zaha Hadid and Nada
Shabout championing the art from their native country, Iraq is slowly
regaining its prime position in the international art scene, further proving
that with time, the artistic discussion of a country can be replaced by the
politics and economic issues.
Dia Azzawi (b. 1939)
The most recognized and celebrated living Iraqi artist is
unquestionably Dia Azzawi. He first came to London in 1976,
where he has remained and continued to develop his unique style that is
instantly identifiable as his own. Azzawi was around to witness the avant-garde
artistic community in Iraq crumble. In 1969, he wrote and published the
manifesto Towards a New Vision co-signed by Ismail Fattah and other artists and
in the early 1970s, before moving to the UK. At the instigation of his
friend Jamil Hamoudi (1924-2003), he set up the One Dimension Group
with fellow artists, including Shakir Hassan Al-Said. Azzawi seeks inspiration
from numerous sources including ancient Sumerian sculpture, archaeology (the
subject in which he graduated), Picasso, and the political tension of the
Middle East. One of his most famous works is Sabra and Chatila Massacre (1982-1983)
noted for its similarity to the infamous Guernica. His response to the
carnage in the refugee camps in Beirut leaves a distinct quality that is hard
to match. On the huge three-meter long canvas, there is no heroism and no hope,
only bloated, distorted and grotesque figures. Simply put, Azzawi’s ability to
completely open the power of cruel conflicts exudes itself on his most
extraordinary painting. In 2012, this was recognized by Tate Modern, London,
and Sabra and Chatila Massacre was acquired and displayed alongside a
series of works by American artist Leon Golub.
Hanaa Malallah (b. 1958)
For more than 20 years, Hanaa Malallah studied
with the celebrated artist Shakir Hassan Al-Said. Now based in London,
Malallah continues to be inspired by the style and imagery of ancient
Mesopotamia. Over the years, with the ever-changing dynamic of her native Iraq,
Malallah has developed her subject matter, observing deconstruction as well as
reconstruction. One of Iraq’s leading contemporary female artists, the global
art world has been slow on picking up on her many talents. After experiencing
three decades of war, Malallah has established her visual character through
embroidery and mixed-media reflections on her past. To add to Malallah’s
artistic charisma, she owns a unique signature: a string of numbers
representing the letters of her name.
Hanaa Malallah, Barzakh Obstacle | © The Park Gallery
Adel Abidin (b. 1973)
One of the most internationally recognized contemporary
Iraqi artists, Adel Abidin began his artistic life as a painter
before moving on to what he is now known for, his video work. He originally
held the belief that the concept behind the work should dictate the choice of
medium, until he found he needed a new argument for his artistic output. He
needed mobility and physical space – hence the shift to video and installation.
Abidin examines issues of culture, displacement and alienation – all the result
of being a migrant (he lives in Finland now). By using humor and
irony to articulate cultural alienation and the marginalization that he has
felt, Abidin has seen his work thrown into the limelight of the international
contemporary art scene including exhibitions with Hauser & Wirth,
London. In 2011, Abidin was also chosen to represent Iraq at the Venice
Biennale, alongside Walid Siti.
Adel Abidin, I’m Sorry, Installation View at Arab Express | Courtesy
Mori Art Museum and the artist
Jananne Al-Ani (b. 1966)
London-based, Iraqi-born photographer Al-Ani uses her work
to show her audience what they could have otherwise missed. Jananne Al-Ani frequently
uses herself and her family in her video work and photography. In one of her
most symbolic works, Untitled 1 and Untitled II (both 1996), we see a
composition of veiled and unveiled figures, often the fabric on the heads not
corresponding to the bottom half of the bodies of her three sisters and mother.
Battling her own identity issues, being from a mixed ethnic parentage, the
questions of sexuality, orientalism and exoticism radiate from these black and
white autobiographical works. Al-Ani has been the recipient of many awards,
most recently the Abraaj Capital Art Prize (2011) for her significantly
exhibited work Shadow Sites II.
Jananne Al Ani, Untitled II, 120x180cm, 1996 | ©
Rose Issa Projects
Walid Siti (b. 1954)
Kurdish artist Walid Siti uses his conceptual work
to refer back to revered symbols and shapes such as the cubic form of the Kaaba
in Mecca and the mountainous peaks of Kurdistan. Evoking mystical significance,
his work has allowed viewers to reimagine Siti’s home and how he remembers
where he grew up. Most recently, Siti had a solo exhibition in Istanbul based
on his own experiences and those of others who risked their lives crossing
hazardous terrain to find a better life. Following on from his preoccupation
with changing landscapes, Siti developed a series of works using a variety of
media to explore the stunning and yet violent aerial shots of militarized
borders. Siti also took part in the 2011 Venice Biennale, being chosen as one
of the artists to represent Iraq for the first time in 34 years, alongside Adel
Abidin. In March 2014, Siti will be exhibiting simultaneously in XVA
Gallery in Dubai, and Taymour Grahne Gallery in New York.
Courtesy Walid Siti
Hayv Kahraman (b. 1981)
Born in Baghdad and educated in Europe, Hayv Kahraman’s
focus on the aesthetics of beauty have thrown her into the limelight of
contemporary art. By using the conventions of formal attractiveness, Kahraman
negates the visual her audience sees, and instead her canvases deliver messages
about current issues. Kahraman’s work embodies her personal nomadic life
mediating between Islamic art, Italian renaissance styles and
even Japanese art. Kahraman’s native Iraq has always impacted her
work: ‘I have of necessity inherited a host of issues that find expression in
my work’, she says. The miniature-style oriental women that Kahraman portrays
in her work are captured in the most unlikely of situations. Although they seem
seductive from afar, up close it is clear that the figures are bearing heavy
stresses on their lithe shoulders. In March 2014, Thirdline Gallery will
be showcasing Kahraman with a solo presentation of her work during Art
Dubai.
Decagram, 127cm in diameter, 2013 | Image courtesy
of The Third Line Gallery and Hayv Kahraman
Hassan Massoudy (b. 1944)
Arguably the most distinguished artist-calligrapher, Hassan
Massoudy tends to depict his words and letters in poetic form, with long,
large blocks of luminous color. Having been described as ‘breathing new life
into an ancient tradition’, Massoudy has become known for producing his
expressive calligraphic works live to music. Born in Najaf, Massoudy made
the decision to move to Baghdad in 1961 to train as an apprentice calligrapher
before moving to Paris in 1969, where he still resides today.
Although in keeping with the classical practices of Arabic calligraphy, it is
with his creative and inventive technique that Massoudy has garnered so many
fans, followers, and even imitators.
Lorsque vous parviendrez au sommet de la montagne, alors
vous commencerez á grimper, 2008 | Courtesy October Gallery
Wafaa Bilal (b. 1966)
Part of the new generation of Iraqi artists, Wafaa
Bilal was arrested on the Kuwaiti border in 1991 after escaping Iraq and
detained in a Bedouin camp for 42 days. He was then transferred by the US
military to the infamous Rafha refugee camp established on the border of Iraq
and Saudi Arabia after the end of the Gulf War. Bilal remained in the
camp for two years, until 1993, when he was one of the first Iraqis to leave
the camp. His work has always aimed to engage the audience. While he was
studying in New Mexico, he focused on starting an artistic dialogue by
getting people out of their comfort zones and producing work that was, at
times, confrontational. Feeling that his work was alienating people, Bilal soon
changed his approach. Though still focusing on politics, he now uses the
internet to reach beyond the gallery to a wider public with his use of
photography, video and computer games. His interactive approach to art has led
to dynamic works such as Virtual Jihadi (2008), an online game in
which players could fight stereotypical Iraqi foes and reach the ultimate goal:
killing Saddam Hussein. The most infamous of his works, of course, is when
Bilal temporarily implanted a camera in the back of his head for the work 3rdi (2010-2011).
Wafaa Bilal, 3rdi, year-long performance, 2010-2011 | Courtesy
the artist
Mohammed Al-Shammerey (b. 1962)
In his multimedia work, self-taught artist Mohammed
Al-Shammerey draws on his personal experience of living in Iraq through
repeated wars. With his cynicism towards conspiracy theories and narrative
fiction, Al-Shammerey’s work reflects his identity as an outsider from an
unsettled country. He finds simple, everyday objects and sustains them in his
paintings by deliberately stripping them of their point of view. Al-Shammerey
has often fed his creative process with the complex feelings he has towards the
effects of globalization. Although one of the lesser known artists on this
list, Al-Shammerey’s modesty in describing his work and powerful messages he
projects has made his honesty both remarkably endearing and agonizing
simultaneously.
Suad Al-Attar (b. 1942)
After leaving war-torn Iraq and suffering familial loss, her
work came to symbolize the profound cultural and personal cost of living in
Iraq. Suad Al-Attar was the first female artist to have a solo show
in Baghdad and her indomitable style has never waned. As with a
number of artists from Iraq, Al-Attar’s work displays issues of longing for her
country as well as the understanding of her luck to have escaped the
destruction. Her early work held dream-like features often portraying figures
from ancient poetry or from stories such as The Epic of Gilgamesh.
Although she is painting less nowadays, Al-Attar’s intense surreal work has
will never be overshadowed and is held in collections across the world.
My City, 2002 Courtesy Albermarle Gallery and Suad Al Atta
موقع اخباري ثقافي يرصد الاحداث والنشاطات الثقافية'
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