Meem Gallery is pleased to present the first part of four exhibitions displaying contemporary Iraqi art this October. Curated by Dia Al-Azzawi, Art in Iraq Today: Part I will exhibit the work of Modhir Ahmed, Nedim Kufi and Hanaa Malallah. The exhibition, and its supporting catalogue, is dedicated to the memory of Jabra Ibrahim Jabra and his seminal essays on modern Iraqi art, titled ‘Art in Iraq Today.’

Part II (Nov – Dec 2010) of the series, will exhibit the work of Ghassan Ghaib, Kareem Risan and Nazar Yahya; Part III (Feb – Mar 2011): Himat Ali, Amar Dawod and Delair Shaker; and Part IV (Mar – Apr 2011), the modern masters Dia Al-Azzawi, Rafa Al-Nasiri and Ali Talib.

About the Artists:

MODHIR AHMED

Modhir Ahmed (b. Baghdad, 1956) received a BFA Major in Graphic Arts, from the Institute of Fine Arts in Baghdad in 1979, followed by a MFA Major in Painting, at the Academy of Fine Arts, Warsaw, in 1986, and also studied Computer Graphics in Skövde from 1990-1991. While at Baghdad’s Institute of Fine Arts, Ahmed studied under Rafa Al Nasiri and attended the lectures of Shaker Hassan Al Said.

He has held international group and solo exhibitions including recent exhibitions in JICPB Cube Gallery, France, Egypt, Japan, 2008; GTL Theatre, Bialystok, Poland, 2009; Albareh Gallery, Bahrain, 8e Triennale De Chamalières, France, 2010; and ET4U Gallery, Banner Exhibition, Nees-Skalstrup, Denmark. He has received numerous awards including Medal of Honour, Thirteenth International Small Graphic Forms, Lódz, Poland 2008; thrice in 2006, Triennial Prize at the Fifth Egyptian International Print Triennial, Cairo, Egypt, Award of Andrioll, Drawing Competition, Naleczow, Poland and the Jury Prize at 7e Triennale De Chamalières, France and again in 2009, International Print Award at the 2nd Guanlan Print Biennial, China, Special Prize at the International Drawing Triennial Manu Propria, Estonia and Statutory Award of the MTG – Kraków, International Print Triennale-Kraków. Ahmed currently lives in Sweden.

NEDIM KUFI

Nedim Kufi (b. Baghdad, 1962) received his BA in Etching from the Fine Arts Institute, Baghdad, in 1985, followed by a BA in Graphic Design from HKU, Utrecht, in 2002. He is currently doing an MA in Design from artEZ, Enschede. Kufi’s work explores ideas of ‘home’ and his exile from his homeland.
He has held solo exhibitions in the US and Middle East including Earth & Ink, Gallery 108, Boston, US, 2003; Attar from Bagdad, 4 Walls Gallery, Amman, Jordan, 2005; and The Moon Follows Us, Sultan Gallery, Kuwait, 2009. He has also participated in numerous international group exhibitions and biennials including Cairo Biennale, 2001; Extending Vision, Triangle Art Residence, New York, 2004; and Iraqi Artists in Exile, Station Museum, Houston, Texas, 2008. In 2009, he was nominated for COSMOPOLITE, The Best Thirty Ideas Above Water, Prize for Hollands Bridge, Amsterdam. He lives and works in the Netherlands.

HANAA MALALLAH

Hanna Malallah (b. Thee Qar, 1958) received a Diploma in Graphic Art from the Institute of Fine Arts, Baghdad in 1979, followed by a BA in Painting from the Academy of Fine Arts, Baghdad in 1988 and an MA in Painting from Baghdad University in 2000. In 2005, Malallah completed her PhD in the Philosophy of Painting, at Baghdad University, where she wrote her thesis on Logic Order In Ancient Mesopotamian Painting. She also holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Islamic and Modern Art from SOAS, London.

She has held numerous solo exhibitions including Schedules and Signals, Athar Gallery, Baghdad, Iraq, 1998; Anda Gallery, Amman, Jordan, 2002 and 2005; and Vivid Ruins, The Mosaic Rooms, Qattan Foundation, London, 2009. International group exhibitions include Contemporary Iraqi Art, Institute du Monde Arabe, Paris, 2000; Baghdad International Festival for Contemporary Art, 2002; Iraq’s Past Speaks to the Present, British Museum, London, 2008-09. She has several awards including Prize of Arab Organisation of Education, Culture & Sciences, 1984-85, First Prize in Painting, Eighth Festival of Al-Wasiti, 1991, and Honorary Award, South Lebanese Cultural Council, 2002. Her work is held in collections at the Centre for Art, Baghdad, Royal Jordanian Museum, Amman, and British Museum, London. She lives and works in London.