Hayder Kadhim

Kadhim Hayder (Iraq, 1932-1985) A Beautiful Form , oil on canvas, signedupper left, further signed, titled and inscribed No.47 The AngleGroup/ First Exhibition/ National Gallery of Modern Art/Baghdad in English and Arabic and dated 1967 in Arabic on thereverse, framed, 51.4 x 63.8cm (20 1/4 x 251/8in). : Private UK collection; acquired in Baghdad in the 1960s and thenceby descent. : The Angle Group , National Gallery of Modern Art, Baghdad,1967, number 47. Hayder's first exhibiton in 1965 was heralded as a landmark inmodern Iraqi art. The style in which he depicted the theme of thatexhibiton was heavy in symbological forms and was created within anew artistic framework that was considered rebellious in both forman content. Al-Zawiya , 'The Angle Group' was established against ahighly poloitical backdrop which garnered profound emotional andintellectual responses throughout the Arab region. The group was led by Faeq Hassan and its members advocated that artshould explore nationalistic and political themes. The group's onlyexhibiton was held in 1967 in which this painting was exhibited.Other members of this important group included Ismail Fattah (lot45 & 46), Mohammed Ghani Hikmet and Ghazi Saudi. : Nizar Salim, L'Art contemporain en Iraq. I. La peinture. ,Sartec, Lausanne, 1977, p.82 : Wijdan Ali (ed.), Contemporary Art from the Islamic World ,Scorpio Publishing Ltd on behalf of the Royal Society of Fine Arts,Jordan, 1989, p.164 Maysaloun Faraj (ed.), Strokes of Genius, Contemporary IraqiArt , Saqi Books, London 2001, p.26

Kadhim Hayder (Iraq, 1932-1985) Untitled , acrylic, oil and lacquer oncanvas, signed and dated '64 in Arabic lower right and signed inEnglish lower center, further signed in Arabic and signed, datedand inscribed with the size in English on the reverse, 100 x 75cm (39 3/8 x 29 1/2in). : Private collection, Paris; acquired directly from the artist.

Kadhim Haidar (Iraqi, b. 1932) Traces of a Body signed in Arabic (lower right); signed, titled and dated in Arabic (on a label on the reverse) oil on canvas 39 x 44½in. (99 x 113cm.) Painted in 1973 The focus of Kadim Haidar's work is morality and tragedy. Influenced by cubism, his style is marked for their simplicity of subject and depiction. From the mid-1960s his work has been historical events of such as Battle of Karbala and the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, and its impact on the Iraqi people. For Haidar, religious inspiration comes through a sense of tragedy, expressed in signs and symbols through his paintings. His compositions are full of theatrical imagery, with surreal imaginative perspectives infused with folklore motifs.

Lot 398 Kadhim Hayder (Iraqi, 1932-1985) The Martyr's Epic Signed and dated "K. HAIDAR 1965" l.l., titled and inscribed "...Fatigued, ten horses converse with nothing/KADIM HAIDER/1965." Oil on canvas, 36 x 50 in. (91.4 x 127.0 cm), framed. Condition: Surface grime. Provenance: From the collection of Louis Albert McMillen. N.B. Hayder was amongst the younger members of La Société Primitive, better known as 'The Pioneers.' The group, which flourished in Baghdad between 1950 and 1974, was comprised of artists who sought to 'abandon the restricting and artificial atmosphere of their studios and paint directly within and from their outdoor environment. Nature, city and village scenes as well as traditional Iraqi country life became their main focus for their works.' (1) The Pioneers were the first of many artistic groups that arose in the 1950s out of a desire to establish a native Iraqi artistic language, and can be understood against the political backdrop of growing dissatisfaction with the British-backed constitutional monarchy. Hayder received his BA in painting in 1957 at the Institute for Fine Arts, Baghdad's first school exclusively for the visual and dramatic arts. From 1961 to 1962, Hayder studied theater design and printmaking in London at the Royal College of Art with such contemporaries as Barbara Hepworth and R.B. Kitaj. Upon his return to Iraq, he taught at the IFA as well as the Academy of Fine Arts in Baghdad. Hayder would later establish the design department at the AFA in 1974, and served for a year as department chair of Plastic Arts there. In addition to his academic career, he worked to promote Iraqi and pan-Arab artistic identity by serving on such organizations as the Society of Iraqi Plastic Artists, Union of Iraqi Artists, and Union of Arab Artists. (1) Faraj, Maysaloun. Strokes of Genius: Contemporary Iraqi Art. London: Saqi Books, 2001. Pg. 24. Estimate $15,000-20,000 Minor flaking and paint loss in l.r. quadrant, largest loss approx. 1/4 x 1/4 in.