Aziz Art August 2018

Shakir Hassan Al Said (1925–
2004), an Iraqi painter, sculptor
and writer, is considered one of
Iraq's most innovative and
influential artists. An artist,
philosopher, art critic and art
historian, he was actively involved
in the formation of two important
art groups that influenced the
direction of post-colonial art in
Iraq. He, and the art groups in
which he was involved,
shaped the modern Iraqi art
movement and bridged the gap
between modernity and heritage.
His theories charted a new Arabic
art aesthetic which allowed for
valuations of regional art through
lenses that were uniquely Arabic
rather than Western.
Biography
Al Said was born in Samawa,
Iraq; a rural area. He spent most
of his adult life living and working
in Bagdad.His rural upbringing
was an important source of
inspiration for his art and his
philosophies. He wrote about his
daily trek to school in the
following terms:
"On my way from school, I used to
see scores of faces, brown faces,
painful and toiling faces. How close
they were to my heart! They
pressed me and I passed them
again and again. They suffered and I
felt their suffering. The peasants
with their loose belts were pricked
by thorns. They were so close to my
heart!"
In 1948, he received a degree in
social science from the Higher
Institute of Teachers in Baghdad
and in 1954, a diploma in painting
from the Institute of Fine Arts in
Baghdad where he was taught by
Jawad Saleem.He continued his
studies at the École nationale
supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris
until 1959,where he was taught by
Raymond Legueult.[8] During his
stay in Paris, he discovered Western
modern art in galleries and
Sumerian art at the Louvre.After his
return to Baghdad in 1959, Al Said
studied the work of Yahya ibn
Mahmud al-Wasiti,sufismand
Mansur Al-Hallaj.He gradually
abandoned figurative expressions
and centered his compositions on
Arabic calligraphy.
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