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Worod Al Tajjer is an Iraqi artist born in Baghdad.
Worod Al Tajjer
Worod Al Tajjer is an Iraqi artist born in Baghdad. She is the daughter of Bahija Al - Hakeem, the famous Iraqi Artist. Worod spent her early years between Basra and Karbala. At the age of fifteen she was sent to the Institute of Fine Arts in Baghdad. Her teachers were the well known Iraqi Artists, Nazeeha Saleen and Khader Jarjees. Al Tajjer participated in several exhibitions in Iraq and some of her work were sent to Lebanon and Jordan. In 2003, due to the invasion of Iraq, she decided to leave Baghdad with her two children to Amman, Jordan, after her son’s school was bombed, and several kidnapping threats were made to her children. Despite the hardship she experienced leaving, she continued to carry her country and culture in her art work away from home.
“ Comfort Ladies “ - watercolor series 2015-2016
Referred to as the oldest profession, prostitution is undoubtedly a job that endured time. What was once a thing of shame, is seen now as a glamours and lucrative venture to some women. In simple and explicit terms, prostitution is a practice of engaging in sexual relations in exchange of benefits. Seen in many countries around the world, the artists used Baghdad as a symbol to highlight the life of the women who work as “comfort ladies “. Today in Baghdad streets, highways, school and offices and other institutions, are flooded with prostitution. The war in Iraq, as in any other war stricken countries, hit the normal society structure. Many families were with no male provider, war lead many women and sometimes some men to ride the wave of prostitution. Looking for someone than can support their daily needs. Reasons vary from poverty, lack of parental care, the harsh consequences of war and instability, love for a luxurious life and sometimes heartbreak. War is destructive in every manner, it destroys culture, societies, the economy and lives. The artist tries to provoke our senses by creating several characters that live through the consequences of war. She as the characters is calling for peace in the shadow of Iraq, hoping that the people will rise and live in dignity and hope that they deserve.
Biography Worod Al Tajjer
Place of Birth: Baghdad - Iraq
* Graduated from: Baghdad institute of Fine Art - 1989
* Member of Iraqis Fine Art association - 1990
* Member of Iraqi Fine Art Union - 1991
* Designer at the National Museum of Modern Art - formerly called Saddam Center of Arts. ( 1991-1998 ) participations
* Iraqi Women gallery ( 1996 ) (1999 )
* Fine Art Biennale of Baghdad - (1988) ( 2002) * Participated in several exhibitions of the Iraqi Ministry of culture. (1999-2002)
Worod's curator is Farah Bseiso is an art collector and fashion designer from Jordan. From a young age, Farah was exposed to art and artists from around the Arab world, she learned everything she knows about fine art from her mother, Laila Al Shammari, a passionate Iraqi art enthusiast that founded the well established Hammourabi Gallery in Jordan in 1995. Currently she is pursuing her love for fashion and design combing her passion for the fine arts into her own unique clothing line.
