Khalid al-Jadir (1924-1988)

Iraq

Khalid Al-Jadir has left behind a unique realistic-expressionist artistic vision. His vision served as a means through which he conveyed his impression about every place he lived in or visited, over five decades, ranging from Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Gulf States, Saudi Arabia, and Brunei eastward to Europe and Morocco in the West.

Through his childhood and teens, Khalid's passion for depicting accurately the features of the outer world was so great that he used to tell me jokingly the invention of the camera was for him competition, rivalling his own skills.

Khalid Al-Jadir successfully developed a realistic-expressionist style that was unique to him resulting from his persistent, experimental work that had taken place in Iraq before his departure to Paris to study in the 'Beaux Arts' in 1949.

Khalid Al-Jadir was undoubtedly influenced by European arts, yet he was able to create his own 'Iraqi' style, which remained constant and unchanged until his very last sketch. Indeed, he never deviated from this line except when it came to elaborately innovate in this style with the purpose of enhancing the lure, splendour and richness of his artistic image.

In his obituary of Al-Jadir, Shaker Hassan Al Sa'eed, the Iraqi painter and one of top art critiques in the Arab world said: “He was truly, incontestably the precursor of contemporary expressionist art in Iraq”.

- Saad Al-Jadir 2009