Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art in Doha has opened a major exhibition titled “What Lingers in the Artist’s Mind: Experiments and Legacies of the Baghdad Modern Art Group,” which runs until February 6, 2027. The exhibition explores more than seventy years of Iraqi artistic development, focusing on the Baghdad Modern Art Group and its influential role in shaping modern art in Iraq.
The Baghdad Modern Art Group was established in 1951 by Jawad Salim and Shakir Hassan al-Said. The group sought to create a distinctly Iraqi artistic language by merging elements of Iraq’s rich cultural and visual heritage with international modernist ideas. Their approach emphasized experimentation within modernism, addressing questions of identity, heritage, and modernity in the context of a newly independent Iraq. According to curator and art historian Nada Shabout, the group developed the concept of Istilham al-Turath, or drawing inspiration from heritage, transforming traditional motifs and historical cultural references into a modern visual language through abstraction and innovative use of form.
The exhibition assembles a diverse array of artworks, archives, photographs, and research materials organized into 17 thematic sections. These materials trace the group’s evolving membership, ideological foundations, and artistic output from the 1940s through to the present day. The show also acknowledges gaps in documentation caused by conflict and displacement, positioning art history itself as a process of discovery and interpretation.
Nada Shabout highlights that the exhibition moves beyond a simple historical account, presenting a complex network of artistic relationships and developments. It connects the foundational work of the group’s early members with subsequent generations of Iraqi artists and later artistic movements from the 1960s and 1970s. The exhibition also reflects on how political and social changes, such as the Iran-Iraq war, influenced the group’s work over the decades.
Mathaf director Zeina Arida emphasized that this project builds on the museum’s ongoing efforts to explore regional modernism and showcase its collection, which holds internationally significant Iraqi artworks. She pointed out the importance of sharing these works at a time when Iraq’s earlier cultural achievements risk being obscured or forgotten. Some key pieces from the movement are held outside Baghdad, making the exhibition a vital opportunity for wider public engagement.
The presentation forms part of Qatar Museums’ 2026 Fall/Winter program, designed to foster cultural exchange and dialogue through major artistic experiences. Both Shabout and Arida noted that the legacy of the Baghdad Modern Art Group continues to resonate in contemporary Arab art, with its ideas evolving and informing new artistic practices responding to current social and cultural realities.
Overall, the exhibition frames Iraqi modernism not as a closed chapter but as a continuing conversation between heritage, identity, and innovation in artistic expression.