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Under the Palm Trees: Modern Iraqi Art with Mohamed Makiya and Jewad Selim
This richly illustrated volume explores creativity in twentieth-century Iraqi art through the art collection of a pioneer architect.
Featuring works from artists such as Jewad Selim from the 1940s, the Baghdad Modern Art Group from the 1950s and 1960s and Iraqi artists in exile from 1980 onward, this volume showcases the collaboration of pioneer architect Mohamed Makiya with the Iraqi artists of his time, shedding light on the relationship between art and architecture and its role in shaping modern Iraqi society. Moreover, the Makiya collection gives a glimpse of the trajectory of Iraqi art during the first half of the twentieth century. It also introduces Mohamed Makiya, a promoter of the art of his own country, to a wider global audience.
Featuring works from artists such as Jewad Selim from the 1940s, the Baghdad Modern Art Group from the 1950s and 1960s and Iraqi artists in exile from 1980 onward, this volume showcases the collaboration of pioneer architect Mohamed Makiya with the Iraqi artists of his time, shedding light on the relationship between art and architecture and its role in shaping modern Iraqi society. Moreover, the Makiya collection gives a glimpse of the trajectory of Iraqi art during the first half of the twentieth century. It also introduces Mohamed Makiya, a promoter of the art of his own country, to a wider global audience.
240 pages, Hardcover
Published May 7, 2019
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About the author
Ahmed Naji
11 books17 followersAhmed Naji is an independent researcher and cultural consultant specialising in modern and contemporary Iraqi art. Naji focuses on research and documentation of public art, museum and private collections, and related literature from articles to catalogues and books.
Between 2005 and 2008 Naji worked at the Iraq Memory Foundation in Baghdad on various aspects of documentation and research of documents, oral history of victims and survivors and arts and artefacts under the rule of the Ba'th regime from 1968 to 2003. He was also a cultural advisor for the Public Affairs Office at the US Embassy in Baghdad. Later, Naji served as the founding Executive Officer of the London-based cultural centre of the Humanitarian Dialogue Foundation in 2009 to 2012. He collaborated with several charitable and cultural projects, and his work has been featured in several news articles such as BBC News, LA Times and The Art Newspaper.
He is the author of Under the Palm Trees: Modern Iraqi Art with Mohamed Makiya and Jewad Selim (Rizzoli New York) which discusses the trajectory of Iraqi art through the prominent art collection of the late pioneer architect Mohamed Makiya (1914-2015). Naji also contributed an essay on pioneer Iraqi artist Jewad Selim for Bagdad Mon Amour exhibition book.
Between 2005 and 2008 Naji worked at the Iraq Memory Foundation in Baghdad on various aspects of documentation and research of documents, oral history of victims and survivors and arts and artefacts under the rule of the Ba'th regime from 1968 to 2003. He was also a cultural advisor for the Public Affairs Office at the US Embassy in Baghdad. Later, Naji served as the founding Executive Officer of the London-based cultural centre of the Humanitarian Dialogue Foundation in 2009 to 2012. He collaborated with several charitable and cultural projects, and his work has been featured in several news articles such as BBC News, LA Times and The Art Newspaper.
He is the author of Under the Palm Trees: Modern Iraqi Art with Mohamed Makiya and Jewad Selim (Rizzoli New York) which discusses the trajectory of Iraqi art through the prominent art collection of the late pioneer architect Mohamed Makiya (1914-2015). Naji also contributed an essay on pioneer Iraqi artist Jewad Selim for Bagdad Mon Amour exhibition book.
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