AMMAN — Iraqi artist Mohammad Muhraddin’s innovative compositions currently on display at the Orfali Art Gallery mix photographs with abstract forms.
In twenty-five paintings, Muhraddin blends pain with joy, the basis of his art works.
The pieces are characterised by the artist’s abstract experimentation with color and composition showing parts of the human form.
Some of his pieces are drawings on paper and blending between collages and the use of colored pencils, inks and acrylic.
One touching piece shows a hand scratching words out — like prisoners who write or etch on their jail cell’s walls — in different gradations of brown mixed with light green.
Muhraddin divides some of his paintings into squares with bold lines to prevent them from blending with their earth-toned background.
The gallery’s proprietor, Rana Snouber, told The Jordan Times that the artist could not attend his exhibition due to health problems.
Born in Basra in 1938, Muhraddin studied painting at the Baghdad Academy of Fine Arts. He was, in terms of painting skills, close to his teacher, the outstanding Iraqi artist Faiq Hasan.
In the 1960s, he traveled to Poland to study at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts, where he was exposed to the modern style of painting.
Arab art critics believe that Muhraddin is among the more prominent Iraqi art innovators. He is considered an integral part of that country’s contemporary art movement.
Muhraddin held his first exhibition in Baghdad in 1955, followed by numerous one-man shows. He has participated in several exhibitions in Baghdad, Paris, New York and across Europe.
The exhibition runs until Sept. 9.