Recently, Kurdish artists participated in a major international art symposium held in Germany. Following the event, a group exhibition opened to showcase the created works. Significantly, several Kurdish artists contributed to this display.
The exhibition, titled “Art and War,” features pieces from the ON TOP symposium in Krefeld. Moreover, twenty-four artists from various nations took part. These artists came from Germany, Russia, Kurdistan, Poland, Iran, Ukraine, and Arab countries. Each participant contributed two distinct artworks.
The symposium itself lasted for one full week. Meanwhile, the resulting exhibition will run from August 22nd until September 19th, 2025. A Kurdish artist and writer named Hama Hashim was among the key participants. He confirmed the event’s collaborative nature.
Furthermore, several important institutions supported this cultural initiative. Key organizers included the NRW Socio-Cultural Center, the NRW V group, and the Ministry for Culture and Science of Rhine-Westphalia. The ON TOP art platform originally conceived and managed the entire project.
This platform specifically invited experienced painters and sculptors from around the world. The symposium’s core idea focused on an open, social creative process. All participants could freely inspire one another. They shared techniques and conceptual ideas throughout the week. Artists created all the works directly at the camp site for immediate display.
This year’s theme was “Preservation.” Accordingly, this concept addresses urgent global changes. It also places responsibility on artists to protect our environment and shared human experiences. Hama Hashim, born in 1973 in Koya, is a seasoned professor of fine arts at the Erbil Institute. He has already organized sixteen personal exhibitions in Kurdistan. He has also joined numerous group shows globally in countries like the USA, France, India, and Poland. Additionally, he has authored and published many books about art history and theory.