Mazin Ahmad, painter and abstract visual artist, was born in 1964 in Baghdad, Iraq.
As early as five, Ahmad showed an interest in art. He recalls enjoying observing his older brother drawing, later trying to emulate the techniques on his own. His family, especially his father, encouraged his early artistic endeavours. Throughout his primary and high school years Ahmad was recognised by his teachers for his artistic talents.
Following high school, Ahmad was accepted into the Baghdad Academy of Fine Arts and graduated in 1990. He then established his own studio in the heart of Baghdad creating a number of sculptures, paintings on canvas, and murals using a variety of mediums including sandstone, marble, ceramics and mosaics. In 2002 Ahmad, his wife and two daughters moved to Australia.
After arriving in Sydney, Ahmad became an active member of a number of Sydney art societies. Some of these societies include the Liverpool and Fairfield Artists’ Association, Casula Powerhouse Art Centre Network, South West Artists, Auburn Artists Society and BAN (Blacktown Artist Network). Being involved in these organisations enabled Ahmad to familiarise himself with Sydney’s diverse cultural and art scenes.
Ahmad’s work investigates what he sees as the intimate relationship that exists between people and the environment. Working from his South West Sydney base, Ahmad builds on his earlier academic training within the arts by using a contrast of organic and geometric forms within his paintings. By doing this the artist attempts to explore the ancient traditions of his new land and its intrinsic connection with humanity.
Whilst Ahmad applies symbols from Iraqi artistic traditions to express meaning within his work, he also draws upon the rich historical meanings and stories found within Aboriginal art, especially those addressing continuous and cyclical themes. Ahmad feels that Aboriginal art effectively communicates the importance of humanity’s need for oneness with the land. He states that “As an artist, I attempt to place on canvas a rough texture of human life, illustrating not a smooth journey but rather one that [is] eventful, complete with activity. To describe these relationships, I have adopted symbols from ancient civilisations and traditions, as well as using hot colours associated [with the] land” (Artist’s website).
Ahmad’s early works in Australia were primarily paintings using a mixture of oil and acrylic on canvas. Yet with interests in poetry, sculpture, installation, stage design and literature, Ahmad was soon creating installation and public art projects which involved a variety of design techniques. An example of this cross-disciplinary interest is Invisible Map (2009, installation) created in collaboration with a writer Nazrin Mahoutchi, where both artists used found objects, photography, digital media and painting.
Ahmad’s work has featured in numerous group and solo exhibitions in Australia, Iraq, Jordan, United States, Austria, Sweden and Germany. In Sydney, Ahmad has exhibited in a number of galleries including Paddington Contemporary Fine Art Gallery, MLC Gallery, Fairfield Museum and Gallery, Blacktown and Campbelltown Art Centres, The Tap Gallery, Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre, Art Room Gallery, St George Museum of Hurstville and the Pokolbin Gallery in the Hunter Valley, all in New South Wales.
His work is also held in a number of private international collections in the United States of America, Austria, Sweden, Germany, Dominican Republic and the Middle East. In Sydney, Ahmad’s work is in the permanent collections of Blacktown City Council and Auburn City Council.
Ahmad’s major exhibition titled 'The Human Being, the Land and the Love’, was held in 2007 in the Fairfield Museum and Gallery and later shown at the Paddington Contemporary Art Gallery, Sydney. This exhibition was funded by the NSW Ministry for the Arts. The exhibition expressed Ahmad’s love for the land, both his birth land and his newly adopted Australia, each shaped by millennia of human habitation. The exhibition was a major breakthrough for the artist within the Sydney art scene.
Ahmad’s work has been recognised both in Australia and internationally. In 2005 he was chosen as one of eighteen artists to represent Australia in the 'Fifth Annual International Biennial Contemporary Art Exhibition’ in Florence, Italy. The artist was awarded the first prize of the Blacktown Art Prize 2006 and Auburn Mayoral Art Award in August 2009 for his art contributions to the Auburn community.
As well as continuing to create public and private works, Ahmad leads art workshops in Sydney local municipalities in an attempt to pass on his artistic knowledge and help develop skills for future generations. His aim is to establish an art school that caters especially to the needs of mentally disabled youths.
In 2011 the artist and his family were living in Fairfield, Sydney New South Wales.
- Writers:
- Paton, Anna
De Lorenzo, Catherine
- Date written:
- 2011
- Last updated:
- 2011
