(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Raynald C Rivera / The Peninsula
Around 100 sketches spanning over 50 years of internationally acclaimed Iraqi-British artist Ala Bashir's artistic journey, some of which created during Iraq's turbulent times, are on display at Al Markhiya Gallery at the Katara Art Centre.
Titled 'Salient Times, the exhibition by the pioneering Iraqi painter, sculptor and plastic surgeon opened on Tuesday to a warm reception from Doha's vibrant art community.
Speaking to local media at the launch event, Bashir was beyond words explaining the vast expanse of his oeuvre on show which documents important moments in Iraq's history.
'I spent more than 50 years to create these sketches, some of them I made during very critical events in the history of Iraq, he said, adding this is the first time that he is exhibiting the sketches in Qatar.
Certain collections in the exhibition reflect challenging periods in Iraq's history such as the Iraq-Iran war, Ameriya shelter bombing, sanctions on Iraq and invasion of Iraq.
Leaning towards surrealism, Bashir's art is known for its portrayal of the human condition. He has exhibited widely in Baghdad, Belgrade, Bonn, Cairo, Doha, Dublin, Leicester, London, New York, Moscow, New Delhi, Paris, Rabat, Rome, Tunis and Vienna, among others. His paintings and sculptures are on permanent display at museums in different countries such as Jordan, France, Iraq, Qatar, the UK and the US.
He said the Iraq Revolution Exhibition which opened in Baghdad on September 20, 1958 merely two months after the July 14 Revolution served as his induction to the world of art.
To him the purpose of 'art is not for entertainment, instead art is ought to provoke the mind, stir thought on the meaning and purpose of our existence.
Born in Baghdad in 1939, Bashir earned his Bachelors of Medicine and Surgery (MBCHB) from the Iraqi College of Medicine in 1963 while also attending the Baghdad Institute of Fine Arts (1959-1962). In 1970, after serving in the Iraqi Air Force (1963-1966), he obtained his Fellowship from the Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh (FRCSEd) and trained as a plastics and reconstructive surgeon in the UK and France in 1971-1972.
In 2002, Bashir earned the State Award for Medical Science, Iraq's highest medical award, and in 2003, the State Award for Fine Art, Iraq's highest art award. In 2005, he authored The Insider: Trapped in Saddam's Brutal Regime, an astonishing testimony of a man who found himself an unwilling confidant to one of the most infamous dictators in history.
The exhibition is open to the public until March 8.
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