Today, Wednesday, a commemorative seminar was held about the late plastic artist Shakir Hassan Al-Sayed at the General Arts Department hall in the Ministry of Culture, as part of the activities of his retrospective exhibition "Reflections of the Gnostic" currently being held.
The artist's family head and his son Mahmoud Shakir Hassan Al-Sayed stated in a press interview that "the artist Shakir Hassan Al-Sayed believed that everything in existence praises God, inspired by His saying: (And there is nothing except that it praises Him, but you do not understand their praise)," and this perception reflected in his works, especially in the final stage of his life when he used pointillism to express his vision of existence and the Creator.
He added that "my father drew inspiration from Arabic letters in his works and was one of the first artists to introduce it into plastic art, and the artistic school he established continues to be present through his students and pioneers, not only in Iraq but also in other Arab countries, in addition to having some of his works in UNESCO."
He explained that "the artist’s works were not separate from his family, as he included its members in his world and ideas."
He continued: "We used to discuss the meanings and implications of his paintings, especially during the war when the wall captured his attention. Just as a microscope reveals things unseen by the naked eye, my father saw things that the viewer did not see."
For his part, the manager of the late artist's works, Mohammed Zanad, mentioned in a press interview that "Al-Sayed was a master for many generations and began his artistic journey with artist Jawad Sulaiman, as a member of the Baghdad Modern Art Group; he was also a professor of art history and the author of the famous contemplative statement published in 1966, through which he introduced modern visions in plastic theories that influenced subsequent generations."
Zanad added that "the one-dimensional aspect in Al-Sayed's work revolves around dealing with human impact on walls, paper, and land, drawing inspiration from what time and humanity leave behind in details, signs, and marks, and he continued to work according to this methodology until his death."
He pointed out that "the exhibition (Reflections of the Gnostic) represents a later stage of the artist's experience, which did not receive enough recognition and exposure," indicating that "the artist turned during this time towards mysticism and spiritual contemplation, and the dot in his paintings became similar to beads in their praise of God, citing his phrase (The Absolute God and I am a point), referring to the intersections of his experience with the ideas of Al-Hallaj regarding dealing with points, symbols, and mystic texts."
For his part, artist Fakher Mohammed stated that "Shakir Hassan Al-Sayed entered, since the 1970s, a phase characterized by interest in religion and human and cosmic existence, and this trend reflected on the nature of his artistic works, which distanced themselves from the concept of traditional painting, reducing the pictorial surface to marks and traces based on the concept of one dimension."
He added that "what distinguishes Al-Sayed's experience is the depth of his culture and his connection to the roots of the civilization of Mesopotamia," clarifying that "he was not concerned with producing works that respond to market demands or pleasing the audience as much as he was interested in expressing himself and his artistic vision, presenting works that derive their value from the essence of art, its independence, and its ability to influence and endure."
For his part, artist Mohammed Al-Kanani clarified that "Al-Sayed's experience transcended the boundaries of identities, times, and places, and did not spring from the reproduction of ready-made forms, but rather relied on an experiential philosophy and cognitive concepts that dealt with the form in its initial creation, then restructured it with a vision intertwining emotional and sentimental dimensions, away from materialism and objectivity," indicating that "the artist embodied his mystical and gnostic philosophy in plastic works that translated his vision into a visual language."