Iraq’s Minister of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities Hassan Nadhi inaugurated the 14th Al-Wasiti Fine Arts Festival on March 28 within the halls of the General Arts Department at the ministry’s headquarters in Baghdad, during a time of political transition for Iraq, with a new government still to be formed following elections last October.
Since its inception in 1972 by pioneer Iraqi artists Faeq Hassan, Hafez Droubi, and Shakir Hassan Al-Said, the festival has grown to become the largest of its kind. The festival was on hiatus in the 1990s, only to resurface in 2010 for one performance. It was then conducted again in 2017 and has been held annually since, with the exception of 2019 and 2021, when it was postponed due to Iraq demonstrations.
This year’s show features 300 artworks, including 75 paintings, 36 sculptures, six ceramics, and 36 calligraphy works, according to organizers. These are placed in two halls of the Ministry of Culture’s Department of Arts. There were also 147 artworks by Iraqi art pioneers on display at the Ministry of Culture’s Faeq Hassan Hall, which was just opened.
Serwan Baran, Hussein Tai, Waleed Qaisi, Ali Jabbar, Mahmoud Shubbar, Ahmad Bahrani, Kareem Saadon, Hasanein Azzawi, Abed El-Amir Khateeb, Ali Najjar, Hassan Abboud, and Haidar Ali, among others, joined Iraqi artists based in the country to present works that reflect the country’s artistic diversity.
Mustafa Kadhimi, Iraq’s prime minister, attended the event and, according to Muhammed, purchased roughly 20 items of art. “Over the last year and a half, the practice of art collecting culture has grown in Baghdad,” he remarked. “Right now, we’re seeing the emergence of a thriving art market, thanks to the efforts of a number of people, including the prime minister.” All of this demonstrates that Iraq’s plastic art movement is still alive and well, and that Iraqi artists are very productive and skilled.