01 Work, The Art of War, Afifa Aleiby's Gulf War, with footnotes

Afifa Aleiby

Gulf War, c. 1991

Oil on canvas

39 3/8 x 27 1/2” (100 x 70 cm)

Private collection

Gulf War reflects Aleiby’s pain for the suffering that had resulted from the Persian Gulf War, which happened between 1990 to 1991 and was triggered by the Iraqi invasion of the State of Kuwait. The conflict resulted in the death of thousands, damage to infrastructure and cultural loss. Notably, The painting were painted while the conflict was ongoing and also explorations of how Aleiby relates to the conflicts that had happened in her birth country of Iraq while she was not physically present in the country. More on this painting

Born in Southern Iraq to an open minded and cultured family, Afifa Aleiby (Iraqi, b. 1953) demonstrated from a very young age an innate interest for the visual arts. Encouraged by her family, she studied at the Institute of Arts in Baghdad, were she was taught by Iraqi masters such as sculptor Miran Al Saadi and painter Rasul Alwan. Determined to continue her studies in Russia, she received a scholarship from Surikov Institute and lived in Moscow for six years, where she was close to other Iraqi intellectuals. Due to her inability to move back to Iraq, she moved to Italy and then to Yemen, where she taught at the Institute of Fine Arts in Aden. Despite the numerous relocations, she remained an active artist, creating stunning works which demonstrate her fight against racism, war, totalitarianism, and terrorism. Since the mid-1990s, Aleiby has been living in the Netherlands. In 1999, she was honoured with a retrospective at the Museum Catharinagasthuis in Gouda. In 2004, 40 years after her departure, she returned to Iraq and has since visited occasionally, yet she expresses her melancholy and longing for the open-minded and cultured Iraq in which she grew up in. She is the sister of the renowned artist Faisal Laibi. More on Afifa Aleiby

Please visit my other blogs: Art Collector, Mythology, Marine Art, Portrait of a Lady, The Orientalist, Art of the Nude and The Canals of Venice, Middle East Artists, 365 Saints, 365 Days, and Biblical Icons, also visit my Boards on Pinterest

Images are copyright of their respective owners, assignees or others. Some Images may be subject to copyright

I don't own any of these images - credit is always given when due unless it is unknown to me. if I post your images without your permission, please tell me.

I do not sell art, art prints, framed posters or reproductions. Ads are shown only to compensate the hosting expenses.

If you enjoyed this post, please share with friends and family.

Thank you for visiting my blog and also for liking its posts and pages.

Please note that the content of this post primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online.