All Manner of Experiments: Legacies of the Baghdad Modern Art Group

The following question will linger in the artist’s mind: by what means will this new art be realized? Various answers will tempt his thoughts, and he will carry out all manner of experiments, as his head, eyes, and hands dictate.

—Baghdad Modern Art Group manifesto

Curated by Nada Shabout, All Manner of Experiments: Legacies of the Baghdad Modern Art Group will be on view in the NYU Abu Dhabi Art Gallery through June 7. Active in the mid-20th Century, the Baghdad Modern Art Group was established in 1951 by two of Iraq’s most influential artists, Jewad Selim (1919–1961) and Shakir Hassan Al Said (1925–2004), and grew to engage many of Iraq’s leading artists, architects, poets, and more. Together, they sought to develop a new art form, one that negotiated a time of globally inflected modernism from Baghdad, an Abbasid city (est. 762 CE) that traces its lineage to the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia. In this exhibition, Dr. Shabout brings together the artists from this circle, as well as those whom its work influenced, both at the time and in the following generations.

After the Kingdom of Iraq’s formation in 1932 as an independent state, Iraqi artists explored the new parameters of the secularized, modern society that was emerging following Britain’s maneuvering to dismantle the Ottoman Empire. Artists questioned the ability of traditional “Islamic art” practices to present their contemporary realities, searching for a more effective visual language. In this context, modern art provided a conduit for exploration and was perceived by Iraqi artists as a global space of shared humanity.

Following their studies at art academies, mostly in Western Europe, where they viewed their own ancient heritage in European museums, Iraqi artists understood modernism’s roots in many non-Western cultures and became eager to make their own contributions to its development. At the same time, they were conscious of their role in their newly formed nation, alongside broader decolonization processes. Their practices thus also involved unpacking the nation’s history, seeking to identify a collective “Iraqiness” among the diverse factions of society. Various artist groups launched initiatives to convey the importance of national representation through culture, which included promoting the modern art movement in Iraq. This period set the stage for Iraq’s so-called golden age of the 1950s: a time of maturation for a generation of artists pivotal in initiating rigorous standards of art theory and practice, thus charting new possibilities for future generations.

The experimental ethos of the group continue to resonate today beyond Baghdad to direct and connect contemporary Iraqi artists around the world to each other.

• Nada Shabout, NYU Abu Dhabi