Jawad Saleem
Iraq, b.1919 - 1961
A pioneer of Iraqi modern art, Jawad Salim went to Paris (1938-39) to train in art but when Germany invaded France, he transferred to Rome (1939-40). After Italy entered the war, he had to cut his studies short and returned to Baghdad where he worked in the Directorate of Antiquities. After the war, he went to the Slade School of Fine Arts at University College in London (1946-48) to continue his training. Upon his return to Baghdad and until his demise, he was head of the Sculpture Department at the Institute of Fine Arts. His early landscapes of Iraqi scenes betray impressionistic overtones, however, Salim was the first Iraqi artist to intellectualize the usage of folk motifs in modern Arab art.
