Iyad Almosawi is an Iraqi–Canadian artist whose practice spans more than four decades. Born in Baghdad, he was educated in printmaking and fine arts in Montreal, where he developed a rigorous foundation in drawing, material exploration, and modernist abstraction. His work synthesizes Mesopotamian visual memory with a global visual vocabulary, engaging themes of identity, transformation, and collective memory.
Almosawi has presented over twenty-eight solo exhibitions internationally, including in Baghdad, Montreal, Rabat, Dubai, London, Kuwait, and Toronto. His practice encompasses painting, monumental charcoal works, mural-scale installations, printmaking, and public art commissions. Across media, he is recognized for his sustained investigation into geometry, symbolic form, and the expressive potential of reduction, particularly in his large-scale black-and-white charcoal works.
He is the recipient of the Outstanding Artist Award in Quebec and has completed a residency at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity in Canada, in addition to participating in the Asilah Art Center in Morocco. Earlier in his career, he contributed to the critical discourse on modern Arab through his published writing. His work is held in public and private collections, including the Canada Art Bank and the Mercedes-Benz Art Collection art collection.
Recent exhibitions such as Baghdadi Memories, Nostalgia, Conflict 24, and Existential Challenges reflect a mature philosophical inquiry into history, transformation, and the human condition. The work balances optimism and gravity, structure and fluidity.
This period marked a deep engagement with Mesopotamian visual memory, calligraphic rhythms, and ornamental structures. Rather than nostalgic citation, these elements were transformed into contemporary metaphors for continuity and resilience.
Following his movement between cultural geographies, his work expanded into larger formats and public murals. Symbolism, geometry, and abstraction became vehicles for exploring identity, displacement, and cultural memory.
Almosawi's formative years were grounded in academic printmaking, where repetition, structural balance, and material exploration shaped his visual vocabulary. These early works demonstrate disciplined experimentation and emerging conceptual awareness.
He has also presented solo exhibitions in Kuwait; Asilah and Rabat (Morocco); Montreal, Toronto, and Manitoba (Canada); London (UK); Tunis (Tunisia); Bangkok (Thailand); Riyadh (Saudi Arabia); Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah (UAE).
Alongside his studio practice, Almosawi has contributed to visual culture as a writer and independent scholar. He has published research and essays addressing Arab and Canadian modern art and has lectured on art history and criticism for over four decades.
Fulbright Scholar Prof. John Dishman writes:
“Art experts in both the West and the Arab world recognize the brilliance of Iyad Almosawi, viewing him as one of the most significant figures among the new generation of artists who have laid the groundwork for a new era in contemporary art.”
Chief Editor Marta Puig of Contemporary Art Curator Magazine (UK) has featured Almosawi in both a critical review and a spotlight feature, further affirming his international relevance.