Biography Tayseer Hamed, born in Cairo in 1955, graduated from the Faculty of Applied Arts in 1978. He is a seasoned member of Egypt’s contemporary art vanguard. Throughout numerous solo exhibitions in…
Egypt
Cultural Narratives, commissioned by Rima Nasser, features works from established and emerging artists in the Middle
Iran
Artwork
Iran
Biography Raana Dehghan, born in 1986 in Tehran, Iran, is a sculptor and painter living and working in Tehran. She earned her BA in Painting from Azad University of Tehran in 2013.…
Iran
Biography Dariush Zandi’s love for photography began as a child in Tehran, where he spent summers helping at a local studio and received his first camera at eight. His passion for photography…
United Arab Emirates
Born in Abu Dhabi, Azza Al Qubaisi studied in London where she received an MA in Cultural and Creative Industries HCT-CERT Abu Dhabi and a BA in Silversmithing, Jewellery Design, and Allied Crafts from London Guildhall. Often referred to as the Emirates’ First Jewellery Artist, Al Qubaisi produces wearable jewelry pieces and large-scale sculptural works that are influenced by the desert landscape of the United Arab Emirates and its rich ancestral past.
Iraq
Resmi Al Kafaji was born in Diywania, Iraq in 1945. He earned a
degree in Art from the Institute of Fine Arts of Baghdad, then later
a diploma in Fine Arts in painting from the Accademia di Belle Arti
of Florence, Italy. His work is a merging of Iraqi and European
culture.
Lebanon
Biography Born in 1969 in Lebanon, Anachar Basbous lives with his family in Rachana, a village renowned for its open-air sculptures overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Raised in a family of artists—his father,…
Iran
Nariman Farrokhi was born in Tehran, Iran in 1985. He has created a unique approach to language, using words for visual impact,
favouring simplicity and directness.
Iran
Biography Sadra Mirsharifi, born in 1996 in Tehran, is a graduate of the Tehran School of Fine Arts. He was a former member of the Eastern Whistle collective and has exhibited his…
Iran
Biography Navid Azimi Sajadi, born in 1982 in Tehran, Iran, graduated in Painting from Azad University, Tehran, before moving to Rome to study at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma. He…
Lebanon
Artwork
Egypt
Guirguis Lotfy is best known for his elaborative ancient painting techniques that were deployed between the 1st and 4th Centuries, namely, the use of egg tempera.
Kuwait
Born in Kuwait, F160 is an artist that stands out for his current, “street” and comedic approach. He studied Advertising and Communication at the University of Oregon, USA. His graphic style thrives on its lightheartedness yet is not shy of dark material.
Iran
Biography Afsaneh Modiramani was born in Tehran. She studied the crafts of Iran at the University of Fine Arts in Isfahan and has over 30 years of experience in textile design. Modiramani…
Jordan
Born in Cairo from a Palestinian Jordanian family. Fares Rizk studied fine art at Parson’s school of design and graduated with an M.F.A.
Lebanon
Born in Beirut in 1973, Raffi Yedalian studied Etching at the Lebanese Academy of Fine Art and Fine Arts at the Academy of Fine Art Toros Roslin. Yadalian’s etchings, paintings and wood and bronze sculptures are characterized by stylized human faces whose angular features convey a sense of eternal longing.
Egypt
Biography Sahar Al Amir, born in Alexandria in 1970, is an Egyptian artist who has studied and received training in both Egypt and Italy across various mediums. She produces multilayered abstract work,…
Iraq
Mahmood Shubbar was born in Babel in 1965. He received a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from Baghdad University in 1986 and later went on to receive his Ph.D. in Fine Arts.
Palestine
Mohammed Al Hawajri was born in 1976 in the Bureij refugee camp in Gaza. Between 1999 and 2001, Al Hawarji participated in the Darat Al Funun Summer Academy in Amman, Jordan led by Marwan Qassab Bashi, and in 2008 he received a grant to study at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris.
Syria
Shadi Abousada is a painter, installation and video artist whose work explores the complex socio-political reality and absurdity of his cultural milieu.
Palestine
Born in Gaza in 1976 Mohamed Abusal explores the precarity and absurdity of living under siege. A painter, photographer, and video and installation artist, Abusal’s works offer a provocative and critical reflection on the trappings–both technological, political, and social–of living in Gaza today.
Iraq
Born in Kerbela in 1964, Fathel Neema is a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts, Bagdad and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, The Hague Royal, where he also completed a post-graduate course in graphic techniques from 2008 to 2009. He is a member of ArtiBrak, Voorburg and Pulchri Studio, The Hague. His solo exhibitions began in 1997 at Gallery Celeste, Wenen, Austria, followed by many others in Brunssum (1998), Berlin’s Pergamon Museum, Museum fur Islamische Kunst (2003), the Museum Swaensteijn, Voorburg (2003), Gallery Kolff Zoeterwoude, the Netherlands (2013), Stand Up Gallery with Jaco Putker, The Hague, the Netherlands (2013), Al Urgewan Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon (2014), The Graphic Art Studio, Beirut, Lebanon (2015) and Almarkhiya Gallery with Qahtan lamina in Doha, Qatar (2015). Since 1995 he has participated in numerous international group exhibitions, including in Jordan, the Netherlands, Germany, India, Iraq and China.
Egypt
Biography Rawda Nour, born in 1990, holds a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from the Graphics Department at Alexandria University. She has received several awards, including first prize at the Youth Salon,…
Tunisia
Nadia Jelassi, born in Tunisia in 1958. Jelassi presented her first works in 1990 at the Biennial of Young Creators from Europe and the Mediterranean at the Museum of Vielle Charité in Marseille, and later in 1992 at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Gibellina, Italy and the Metropolitan Museum in Tokyo.
Iran
Biography Habib Farajabadi, born in 1982 in Iran, is a painter and sculptor based in Tehran. He employs various tools like nails, wood stock, forks, and brushes to create his vibrant acrylic…
Lebanon
Artwork
Lebanon
Artwork
Syria
Born in Damascus in 1968, Boutros Al-Maari studied printmaking in Syria and received a Doctorate in Social Anthropology from EHESS in Paris, France. Both cultural contexts are reflected in his distinctive paintings.
Iran
Artwork
Lebanon
Artwork
Iran
Artwork
Lebanon
Artwork
Iran
Biography Pouya Parsamagham, born in 1981 in Tehran, Iran, graduated from the University of Applied Science and Technology with a degree in filmmaking and graphic design. He began his career as a…
Syria
Ahmad Kleige was born in Aleppo, Syria in 1964. He studied at the Fathi Mohamed Fine Arts Center in Aleppo.
Egypt
Born in Beheira, Egypt in 1984, Hady Boraey lives and works in Alexandria, Egypt. He received a BFA in 2005 and an MFA in 2011 as well as a Ph.D.
Tunisia
Born in Tunisia in 1937, Nja Mahdaoui graduated from the Academia Santa Andrea in Rome and the École du Louvre in Paris in 1967. As a visual artist he has mainly focused on calligraphy. Initially inspired by abstract painting, his work is remarkably innovative in the artistic field of the “written word”.
Palestine
Born in 1983, Abdulrahman Katanani was raised in the Sabra refugee camps (Beirut, Lebanon). He is a third-generation refugee
since his grandparents fled their hometown, Jaffa in Palestine, settling in Shatila after the Nakba in 1948.
Iran
Biography Sepideh Sakhaei, born in 1993 in Tehran, Iran, is a multidisciplinary artist. She earned her BFA from the Art University of Tehran in 2016 and a Master’s degree in General Psychology…
United Arab Emirates
Shaikha El Kutbi is a visual artist who works primarily in photography, drawing, and installation art. Her work is self-reflexive, exploring themes of self-awareness and perceptibility and often blurring the line between fiction and reality.
Iran
Born in Tehran, Iran in 1945, Fereydoun Ave is a central figure in the Iranian art scene as he is one of the most important and influential
contemporary artists of Iran.
Lebanon
Born in Beirut, Ginane Makki Bacho is a multimedia artist whose work offers a unique perspective on the disruptive and brutal effects of the Lebanese Civil War and on-going wars in the contemporary world.
Lebanon
Artwork
Iran
Biography Born in Sari, Iran in 1992, Sina Choopani considers himself an experimental artist. He studied Sculpture at the University of Tehran. In his work, he mainly experiments with destruction and combines…
Iran
Biography Atousa Jannesari, born in Tehran, Iran, in 1981, holds a B.A. in Painting from Sooreh University, which she completed in 2007. She won the Karaj Annual Drawing Award in 2005. Atousa…
Lebanon
Artwork
Iran
Biography Sara Rahmanian, born in 1993 in Tehran, Iran, earned her BFA in Painting from the University of Art Tehran in 2016 and her MFA in Painting and Printmaking from Yale University…
Syria
Aula Al Ayoubi was born in Damascus in 1973 and studied mathematics and educational sciences at the University of Damascus.
Syria
Artwork
Iran
Biography Fatemeh Bahman, born in Tehran, Iran, in 1981, is an accomplished painter and art writer. She has a background in mathematics and literature graphics from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic…
Lebanon
Artwork