Hassan Sharif

Hassan Sharif is widely acclaimed as a pivotal figure in contemporary and conceptual art within the region, frequently hailed as the father of conceptual art in the Gulf.

Biography of Hassan Sharif

Born in Dubai in 1951, Hassan Sharif embarked on his artistic journey by receiving his diploma in Fine Arts and Design at The Byam Shaw School of Arts in London, UK, in 1984.

Starting in the late 1970s, he engaged as a cultural producer and facilitator, transitioning between various roles such as artist, educator, critic, activist, and mentor to contemporary artists in the UAE.

Throughout his career, Sharif has been instrumental in shaping the cultural landscape of the UAE. As the founder of the Emirates Fine Arts Society and the Art in the Youth Theater and Art in Dubai initiatives, he played a pivotal role in nurturing and promoting local artistic talent.

He served as a jury member at the Sharjah International Art Biennial in 1997, 1999, and 2003, while actively participating in both local and international exhibitions. The majority of his solo and group exhibitions were held in the United Arab Emirates.

Sharif is credited as the trailblazer who introduced the UAE to contemporary art. Internationally renowned as one of the most prominent contemporary artists from the Arab world, Hassan Sharif's art was featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions.

Hassan Sharif died in 2016. His artworks are prominently featured in major public collections worldwide, including the Guggenheim in New York and Abu Dhabi, Centre Pompidou, Mathaf Arab Museum of Modern Art, Tate Modern, and the Sharjah Art Foundation.

Hassan Sharif's Art Style

Acknowledged as a trailblazer of conceptual art and experimental techniques in the Middle East, Sharif's artistic endeavors transcend conventional boundaries, embracing a diverse range of mediums including performance, installation, drawing, painting, and assemblage.

Throughout his career, Hassan Sharif delved into the realms of form, time, social dynamics, and mathematical systems. His artistic repertoire is characterized by the utilization of everyday materials in accumulative installations, coupled with intricate social and philosophical contemplations. Departing from the prevalent calligraphic abstraction of the 1970s regional art discourse, Sharif embraced a contemporary artistic lexicon inspired by the non-elitism and intermedia of the Fluxus art collective, as well as the systematic approaches to creation inherent in British Constructionism.