Kurdish winner of prestigious German art award launches new gallery show

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdish artist known as Hiwa K, recipient of Germany's 2019 Hector Prize, unveiled a new exhibition of his works this week at an art gallery in the city of Kunsthalle, Mannheim. 

"My focus was in terms of insight gained in communication though black and white television during the 1980s Iran-Iraq War," he told Kurdistan 24.

The show's theme, he added, reflects his thoughts and memories in the time of that war, including the Halabja chemical gas attack of 1988. 

Dr. Sebastian Baden, Curator of Contemporary Art, Sculpture, and New Media in Mannheim, said, "Hiwa K's artwork has a unique insight into the times of war, with his art representing his struggle with conflict."

The gallery collection featured a bronze bell fashioned out of remnants from deadly conflicts, such as ammunition cases from the Iran-Iraq War, the Gulf War, and the 2003 Iraq War.

Additionally, it features several old black and white televisions, the screens of which are covered with color foil that create images similar to what he remembers on those his father brought home in the 70s and 80s.  

Born in 1975 in the Kurdistan Region's city of Sulaimani, K studied painting in Iraq before moving to Germany where he has lived and created art for more than 20 years.

With his multi-media artworks, Hiwa K tackles questions of homeland, identity, and societal/geopolitical power relations.

He was awarded the prestigious Hector Prize for contemporary art in January 2019, selected among 14 finalist candidates. Established in 1997, the Hector Prize supports artists between thirty-five and fifty years old who reside in Germany and who work with sculpture, object art, and multimedia installations. The scheduling of the exhibition was part of the prize K received, along with approximately $22,800.

The Hector Prize is given out only once every three years. 

Editing by John J. Catherine