Dalloul Art Foundation

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AHMAD CANAAN AHMAD CANAAN

AHMAD CANAAN, Palestine (1965)

Bio

Born in 1965, in Tamra, the Lower Galilee, Palestine, Ahmad Canaan is a Palestinian painter and sculptor. He has lived in Tamra, now part of the Israeli state, since he completed his art studies at...

Born in 1965, in Tamra, the Lower Galilee, Palestine, Ahmad Canaan is a Palestinian painter and sculptor. He has lived in Tamra, now part of the Israeli state, since he completed his art studies at the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem from which he graduated with a BFA in 1989. In 2009, Canaan received a Diploma in Museum Studies from Tel Aviv University.

Canaan is the curator of Jaffa Salon of Palestinian Art and the founder of the municipal gallery in Tamra.

Canaan is a prolific artist who can alternate from one medium to another with ease. His flexibility and pragmatic approach to the problems of working and living in the state of Israel allowed him to develop as an artist and to advocate the concept of 'being Palestinian.' Palestine perceived as an idea, and a place in motion is what informs the imagery and form of the poetry of Mahmoud Darwish, which is part of Canaan's main inspiration.

In his paintings, Canaan addresses themes that go back in history to the twelfth century when Saladin paved the way for the re-conquest of Jerusalem. Canaan's sculpture of Saladin in Tamra indeed looks like the archetypal knight in shining armor and fits. However, a closer look reveals that it is constructed from a multitude of smaller knights. Pattern and repetition were typical in Canaan's work. He would create paintings with repetitive images of a knight riding on a horse - a central motif in his work.

Canaan revisited themes addressed by modernist artists such as Ismail Shammout and Suleiman Mansour. In expressive and nearly realistic paintings, he depicted peasants and pastoral images full of orchards and green olive groves, which became a symbol of endurance throughout the mid-nineties. The artist created sculptures made of the iconic key, a symbol of ownership of Palestinian houses. Also, Canaan painted the refugee man with his traditional Kufiyah and Eiqal while he sadly departs from his homeland.  Some of Canaan's monumental sculptures are made of metal, while other smaller ones are made of wood. They occupy public spaces and school playgrounds. The artist was keen to have children interact with his symbolic sculptures that narrate the history of Palestine.

Canaan received the American-Israel Cultural Foundation Prize in 1989. In 2003, and 2010 he received the artist in the Community Grant from the Israeli Ministry of Culture. He participated in group exhibitions and international symposiums in the Middle East, Europe, Japan, Russia, and the USA. Canaan lives and works in Tamra.

This is a short biography. The full version , along with research, CV and sources will be posted soon. Stay tuned and visit us often or become a member to be notified of our updates.

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CV

Selected Solo Exhibitions

2020

Screens and Social Circles, Keymedia Cultural and Art Center, Haifa, Palestine

2019

Trapped Humanity, Umm Al-Fahm Art Gallery, Palestine

2016

It will be good, Tivon Art Center, Haifa, Palestine

2012

Beyond the Ornament, Wilfrid Museum for Asian Art and Studies, Palestine

2010

Ahmad Canaan: Sculptures, Omer Industrial Park, Palestine
New Paintings, White House Gallery, Kibbutz Nir Oz, Palestine

2009

On a Thin Wire, Tal Greenfield Gallery, Kfar Vradim, Palestine
Knight of Dreams, Al-Hakawati Palestinian National Theater, Jerusalem, Palestine

2008

Quest, M. Beck Gallery, Homburg, Germany

2006

The Knight, Al-Hallaj Art Gallery, Ramallah, Palestine

2003

Self Portrait, The Gallery, The Ort Braude Academic College, Karamiel, Palestine

2001

Here I Am, The Peace Gallery, Jewish-Arab Center for Peace, Givat Haviva, Palestine
1992 Wooden Platforms, The Municipal Gallery, Nazareth, Palestine

1989

Ploughs, Al-Hakawati Palestinian National Theater, Jerusalem, Palestine

Selected Group Exhibitions

2023

The Little Prince of Gaza, Dalloul Art Foundation, Beirut, Lebanon

2022

The Spring Collective Exhibition, Zawyeh Gallery, Al-Balo’, Ramallah, Palestine

2020

Contemporary models of realism (MOCAK Collection), Museum of Contemporary Art in Kraków (MOCAK), Krakow, Poland

2015

Neighbors, The Gallery, The Ort Braude College, Karmiel, Palestine
Unprotected Zone, Museum on the Seam, Jerusalem, Occupied Palestine

2014

The Autumn Exhibition, SPURS Gallery, Beirut, Lebanon
Metamorphoses in the war times, UNESCO Palace, Beirut, Lebanon
Colors of life, Zawyeh Gallery, Ramallah, Palestine
Yolboyo Art Gallery, Antalya, Turkey
Seven Woman House Keys, Gallery 14, Amman, Jordan

2013

Traces, Zawyeh Art Gallery, Ramallah, Palestine

2010

Kayan, Sculptures Exhibition, Palestenian Art Court, Jerusalem, Palestine
In Family Unity, Unity of the world, Yekaterinburg, Russia
In Family Unity, Unity of the world, Moscow, Russia
Drawings by Sculptors, Museum Schloss Fellenberg, Merzig, Germany

2009

Something must happen, Gazza Culture Center, Gaza, Palestine
Palestinian Art Exhibition, in collaboration with Al-Mahatta Gallery in Ramallah, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman
X7, Cairo Bank Gallery, Amman, Jordan
Man, Land, Museum on the Seam, Jerusalem, Palestine

2005

The Country and Its People, The Mormon University, Jerusalem, Occupied Palestine
Correspondence,The Museum for Islamic Art, Jerusalem, Occupied Palestine
Secret Art, Mani House Museum, Bank Leumi, Occupied Palestine
It’s Going to Be Olympic, Gebo Art Space, Occupied Palestine
Colors under Siege, Rashad Al-Shawa Center, Gaza, Palestine

2003

Black/White, Beit Hagefen, Haifa, Occupied Palestine
Birds, Haim Sturman Museum, Eid Harod, Occupied Palestine
Palestinian Art, Nissan Art Gallery, Doha, Qatar

1997

The International Biennale of Alexandria, Alexandria, Egypt

Awards and Honors

The Lifetime Achievement in Art Award, The Ministry of Culture, Palestine

Collections

Ramzi and Saeda Dalloul Art Foundation, Beirut, Lebanon
The Museum of Photography, Tel Hai, Occupied Palestine
Museum on the Seam, Jerusalem, Occupied Palestine
The Open Museum, Omer, Occupied Palestine
The National Museum, Amman, Jordan
Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

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Press
Museum On The Seam Ahmad Canaan.pdf
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_ www.uruknet.info _ informazione dal medio oriente _ information from middle east _ [vs-1].pdf
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Ahmad Canaan and Moshe Kassirer_America-Israel Cultural Foundation_Press.pdf
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الفنان أحمد كنعان..التراث هوية - صحيفة الرأي.pdf
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The NY Times_2011.pdf
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YnetNews_2010.pdf
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الفنان أحمد كنعان..التراث هوية _ صحيفة الرأي.pdf
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Videos
" نحن نملك طاقات فنية كبيرة في فلسطين ’’ - أحمد كنعان - ج2 - ع طريقك - الموسم ٢ - مساواة
’’ أعمل على الربط بين التاريخ القديم والحاضر’’ - أحمد كنعان - ج1- ع طريقك - الموسم ٢ - مساواة
" الفنان التشكيلي الفلسطيني يمكنه ان يعتاش من فنه ’’ - احمد كنعان - الكاملة - ع طريقك ٢ - مساواة
AHMAD CANAAN ART WORKS
Ahmad Canaan/ Palestinian Artist
الفنان احمد كنعان
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Exhibitions
COLORS OF LIFE
MATHAF COLLECTION SUMMARY, PART 1

AHMAD CANAAN Artwork

The Devil's Funeral

AHMAD CANAAN, Palestine, 1989
121.5 x 96 cm

Refugee

AHMAD CANAAN, Palestine, 2010
190 x 140 cm

The refugee ship

AHMAD CANAAN, Palestine, N.D.
50 x 72.5 x 25.5 cm

Illegal habitants / مقيمون متسللون

AHMAD CANAAN, Palestine, 2013
112 x 172 cm

Marriage

AHMAD CANAAN, Palestine, 1992
119.5 x 110.5 x 12 cm

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