Muqbil Al-Zahawi

rdf:langString Muqbil Al-Zahawi

rdf:langString Muqbil Al-Zahawi

rdf:langString Muqbil Al-Zahawi

rdf:langString Coiling, staining, reliefs, ceramic, sculpture

rdf:langString Muqbil Al-Zahawi (born 1 April 1935) (Arabic, مقبل الزهاوى) is an Iraqi ceramicist. His creative and powerful sculptures and reliefs have been exhibited in museums, galleries, international shows, studios, and private residences throughout the U.S., Western Europe, and the Middle East. Al-Zahawi's works derive inspiration from African Art, select Western artists, and his background as an Iraqi Muslim. Al-Zahawi was born in Baghdad, Iraq, the son of an Iraqi lawyer from a prominent family of Kurdish origin, Dhafir Al-Zahawi, whose grand-uncle was the progressive Iraqi poet and scholar, Jamil Sidqi Al-Zahawi. As a budding artist, Al-Zahawi in the late 1950s began experimenting with several artistic mediums, eventually selecting ceramic sculptures constructed using the method of coiling. His forms have been described as "ancient", "whimsical", "sensual", "aggressive", and "powerful" all achieved through the textures, hollow spaces, earthy hues, and angular shapes that define this body of work. Al-Zahawi lived most of his life outside of his native Iraq, residing in Geneva, Switzerland where he worked with the United Nations International Telecommunication Union. In his later years, he lived in Cairo, Egypt, and later in California. While war, sanctions, and civil strife thwarted his desire to eventually return to Iraq, he was able to portray his pride and love for his heritage through his art. Glyn Uzzell, an artist and art teacher and a long-time mentor of Al-Zahawi, once wrote: "It is clear that Zahawi has drawn strength and inspiration from a number of separate entities to forge a single style, uniquely his own."