Join us Thursday, February 1 for a conversation with Iraqi Canadian artist asmaa al-issa, exploring cultural heritage through artistic practice.

The conversation between asmaa and Shaymaa Khalil, Director of IARP, begins at 6 p.m. at Open Book's Performance Hall. This will be followed by an intimate reception with Iraqi tea and sweets running from 7 – 7:45 p.m.

ABOUT THE ARTIST
asmaa al-issa (b. Baghdad, Iraq) cultivates an art practice that responds to her lived experiences and interactions with the land, materials, and people around her. asmaa’s practice as an artist and educator focuses on nurturing creativity while building cross-cultural alliances.
asmaa’s formal education includes a BFA in Visual Arts from the University of Calgary, CA (2013) and a MFA in Interdisciplinary Studies from Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, CA (2017). asmaa was a fellow & instructor at the Painting & Printmaking Department at Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar (2018 – 2019), an artist in residence at Studio Kura in Itoshima, JP (2019), and Manarat Al Saadiyat Art Studio in Abu Dhabi, UAE (2022). Her artwork has been exhibited across Canada, in Spain, Japan, and Qatar. asmaa’s artistic practice has been supported by her family, Canada Council for the Arts, Alberta Foundation for the Arts, and Calgary Arts Development.

This event is presented by the Iraqi American Reconciliation Project.

This event is part of programming for the exhibition "Today, Tomorrow" on view at Anderson Center from February 3 - April 20, 2024. The virtual exhibition is available at today-tomorrow.org.

This engagement is supported by the Arts Midwest GIG Fund, a program of Arts Midwest that is supported by the Minnesota State Arts Board.