Google Doodle honors Iraqi artist Naziha Salim and her contribution to contemporary art

Google paid a tribute to Naziha Salim on Saturday by dedicating a creative doodle. 

Salim was a painter, professor, and one of the most influential artists in Iraq's contemporary art world. She was born in 1927 in the Turkish city of Istanbul, her father was an officer in the Ottoman army, and along with his military work, he was also a painter which encouraged his daughter to enter this field too.

Her artistic work focused on Iraqi women in rural areas and farmers, using bright colors.

The Doodle is an ode to Salim's painting style and also celebrates her long-standing contribution to the art world. The artist was well-known for her portrayal of rural Iraqi women and peasant life.

On this day in 2020, Salim was spotlighted by the Barjeet Art Foundation in their collection of female artists. The painter was born into a family of Iraqi artists in Turkey. While her father was a painter, her mother was a skilled embroidery artist.

Apart from her and her father, Salim's all three brothers also worked in the arts, including Jawad, who's widely considered one of Iraqi's most influential sculptors.

From an early age, Salim enjoyed creating her own art.

Salim studied painting and graduated with distinction from the Baghdad Fine Arts Institute. "Because of her hard work and passion for art she was one of the first women awarded a scholarship to continue her education in Paris at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts," Google said in its blog post.

When Salim was in Paris, she specialized in fresco and mural painting. After graduation, she spent several more years abroad, immersing herself in art and culture.

Naziha Salim’s artwork hangs at the Sharjah Art Museum and the Modern Art Iraqi Archive.



PUKmedia