Aatifi

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Aatifi in his studio

Aatifi (born December 12, 1965 in Kandahar , Afghanistan ) is an Afghan-German artist who has become known for his individual visual language: In his works, the painter and printmaker combines fragments of classic calligraphy with stylistic elements of modern German painting to create abstract contemporary art without any text reference. In his native Afghanistan, at the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s, he received two national prizes as well as the first prize of the Afghan artist association Hakim Naser Khesraw Balkhi; in his second home, Germany, further awards and grants followed in 1997. In 2015, the Pergamon Museum in Berlin presented the three-and-a-half month solo exhibition “Aatifi - News from Afghanistan” with three dozen large-format abstract paintings, etchings and ink drawings by the artist, which were integrated into the permanent exhibition of the Museum of Islamic Art . Aatifi lives and works in Bielefeld in East Westphalia (North Rhine-Westphalia).

biography

1965–1982: Kandahar, Afghanistan

Aatifi grew up in Kandahar , Afghanistan, where the main language spoken is Pashto and the Arabic alphabet is used. At the age of four he began to draw figuratively and objectively and to practice calligraphy. At the same time as primary school and middle school, he received several years of training as a calligrapher from various masters in his hometown from 1971. In doing so, he learned to master the most important calligraphic styles such as Kufi , Naskh , Thuluth , Nastaliq , Schekaste, Muhaqqaq , Raihan, Dewani and Roqa and, according to the harmony theory of the famous calligrapher and vizier at the Abbasid court in Baghdad, Ibn Muqla (d. 940 ) to draw artfully.

As a teenager, Aatifi began to revolt against the strict rules of changing classical Islamic writing and mixing his inks with spices and other liquids such as pomegranate juice. He dealt with European art and art history, with Renaissance painting and with contemporary art . At the age of 17, he moved to Kabul in 1982 to do his Abitur there and study art at the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Kabul.

1982 - mid-1990s: Kabul, Afghanistan

From 1982 to 1984 Aatifi attended the Lycée Ibni Sina (grammar school) in Kabul, where he obtained the university entrance qualification. In 1987 he opened his own studio in the southern city of Kabul in the Afghan capital and built an art school for calligraphy and drawing for young people and adults.

In 1989, even before he began studying painting, the Afghan Ministry of Culture awarded the 24-year-old the national prize for calligraphy and composition for the first time. The following year Aatifi received the award again. In 1991 the Afghan artists' association Hakim Naser Khesraw Balkhi awarded him the first prize.

From 1989 to 1992 Aatifi studied painting at the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Kabul, where he attended, among other things, the class of Professor Akbar Salam. In 1995 he came to Germany.

1995–1999: Radebeul, Dresden

Aatifi lived in Radebeul for the first few years . In 1996 she was accepted into the Saxon Artists Association. In 1997 he worked as a guest artist in the ateliers of Moritzburg Castle . He met the painter and professor of the Dresden Art Academy, Siegfried Klotz , who brought him to the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts , where Aatifi completed a one-year guest study in painting in 1997/1998. During his time in Saxony he was interested in the German school of painting.

Since 1999: Bielefeld

At the end of the 1990s, Aatifi moved his residence to North Rhine-Westphalia and founded a studio in Bielefeld, East Westphalia, where he still lives and works as a freelance artist. In 2004 he received German citizenship.

Far from the recognized art scenes, Aatifi said he wanted to “research in peace” in Bielefeld. Here the fundamental change in his work took place, the development of a new abstract visual language.

2015: Solo exhibition "News from Afghanistan", Pergamonmuseum Berlin

Painting from the Blue Series, untitled I, 150 × 190 cm, acrylic on canvas, 2015, shown in the exhibition "Aatifi - News from Afghanistan"

In 2015, Stefan Weber , director of the Museum for Islamic Art in the Pergamon Museum Berlin, invited Aatifi as a contemporary artist to show current works on canvas and paper on Museum Island . As a justification he formulated in the exhibition catalog: “The work of the German-Afghan artist Aatifi on the modern interpretation of 'Islamic' calligraphy shows in an impressive way how elements of a long cultural and art-historical tradition in painting and graphics are brought to new life through spectacular reinterpretations. The Persian or Arabic calligraphy - the most important art form in the classical Islamic world - is transformed from a 'written code' that is only culturally understandable to part of a modern international artificial language - and on a high qualitative scale. "

With the solo exhibition “Aatifi - News from Afghanistan”, contemporary art was shown for the first time on a large scale, which was embedded in the museum's permanent exhibition and thus juxtaposed with Islamic culture from 14 centuries. Two large-format works on canvas from the exhibition, which were juxtaposed in the Mshatta Hall of the early Islamic palace facade from Jordan (8th century), and selected works on paper have now entered the collection of the Museum of Islamic Art.

In the exhibition period from July 3 to October 18, 2015, more than 233,000 people visited the Museum of Islamic Art in the Pergamon Museum Berlin and the exhibition. There was nationwide media coverage. Among other things, the art magazine art recommended “News from Afghanistan” in its online edition at the beginning of July 2015 as one of five exhibition tips of the week: “Contemporary Afghan art surrounded by 14 centuries of Islamic cultural history from the Pergamon Museum: an exciting mixture that deserves an Arabic exclamation mark . ”In its September 2015 issue, art magazine also published an exhibition notice:“ Bunt. Abstract. Contemporary. The Afghan-German artist Aatifi (* 1965) translates the centuries-old Islamic calligraphy into an impressively modern visual language in his up to six meters tall works. "

plant

Stefan Weber, director of the Museum of Islamic Art in the Pergamon Museum Berlin, wrote in the catalog “Aatifi - News from Afghanistan” about Aatifi: “Letters rush through Aatifi's pictures. They seem to fall, to move freely and are captured as a photographic section in the moment of great movement. Colored compositions with a dynamic flow and clear shapes. They are characters, parts of an alphabet, but not words. It can be determined, but no longer deciphered. If you want to read it, then as a reference to a cultural landscape in which Aatifi spent the first phase of his life. "

Untitled painting, 190 × 230 cm, acrylic on canvas, 2014, shown in the exhibition "Aatifi - News from Afghanistan"

In Afghanistan

Even as a child, Aatifi saw mysterious lines and figures in letters. Since then he has dealt with the centuries-old styles of Islamic calligraphy, with the form and essence of Arabic characters . As early as Kandahar, he began to experiment with selected characters from the classical art of writing, with the shapes and lines of individual letters, and to modify them. To explore the strength and dynamics of new connections, he divided his calligraphic ink drawings on paper and put them together again. As a teenager, he consciously countered the strict compositions with drops and expressive splashes. At the end of the 1980s, in his studio in Kabul and increasingly when he began studying painting, he began to embed calligraphy on canvas and to create large-format paintings. During his studies at the Faculty of Fine Arts, Aatifi further developed calligraphy in connection with painting.

In Germany - Dresden and Radebeul

From 1995 onwards, the painter and printmaker once again greatly changed and reduced his scriptural art. As the art historian and curator at the British Museum in London, Venetia Porter, puts it : “When he moved to Germany in 1995 and continued his studies with Professor Siegfried Klotz at the University of Fine Arts in Dresden , this should fundamentally change his approach and move him away from text remove and lead into the pure abstraction of the letter - now the hallmark of his style, which he describes as the 'concentrated content of my mind'. "

In Dresden, Aatifi discovered printmaking, the art of etching, for himself.

"Osmose 2", ink drawing on handmade paper, 80 × 95 cm, Aatifi 2015
From the series "Osmose": "Osmose 10", ink drawing on handmade paper, 80 × 95 cm, Aatifi 2015
Collage from the 2016 series of works by Aatifi: untitled, 80 × 90 cm, monotype, graphite, metal on handmade paper
Large-format collage from the 2016 series of works by Aatifi: Untitled, 100 × 150 cm, monotype, graphite, metal on handmade paper

In Germany - Bielefeld

The move from Dresden and Radebeul to East Westphalia at the turn of the millennium marked another turning point in Aatifi's work. In Bielefeld, where he has established a studio in the center, the painter and printmaker concentrates on his main abstract-scriptural work, on a further reduction of forms. Since then he has been using selected characters under purely aesthetic and compositional aspects, fragmenting, rotating and layering the forms and lines, working with their dynamics, depth and space.

Aatifi himself said in his catalog “News from Afghanistan” about his imagery: “I treated this unusual plant - the scriptural art - like wild growth, detached it from its environment without isolating it, radically pruned it without injuring it, crossed them hard and thrown their new breeding ground at your feet. It did not die, but blossomed powerfully and magnificently. Maybe I gave her a new life with it. Just take a look …"

Exhibitions (selection)

  • 2018: 'Here and Now - Current Art in Westphalia', Gustav-Lübcke-Museum, Hamm (participation)
  • 2018: paper positions Basel, Galerie VON & VON (Nuremberg), Basel, Switzerland (participation)
  • 2017: POSITIONS Berlin Art Fair, Gallery VON & VON (Nuremberg), Berlin (participation)
  • 2017: 'Aatifi - Neographie', TKA Art Advisors, Hamburg
  • 2017: 'Aatifi - Abstract Neography', International Club in the Foreign Office e. V., Berlin
  • 2017: SimonBart Gallery, Sardinia, Italy (participation)
  • 2017: 'Aatifi', Gallery VON & VON, Nuremberg
  • 2017: DIE GROSSE NRW, Museum Kunstpalast, Düsseldorf (participation)
  • 2015: 'Aatifi - News from Afghanistan', Museum for Islamic Art in the Pergamon Museum Berlin
  • 2015: 'Aatifi - Prozess III', Museum Ratingen, Ratingen
  • 2012: 'Event Print 4: Views - Prospects', Galerie Vor Ort Ost, Leipzig (participation)
  • 2011: 'METAKOM', Kunstverein Kreis Gütersloh, Gütersloh (participation)
  • 2009: 'Aatifi - Scriptural Fragments', gallery in the Torhaus, Landeskulturzentrum Salzau, Salzau
  • 2006: 'Contemporary Art Kabul', art Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe (participation)
  • 2005: 'Aatifi - dance in the early morning', Stadtgalerie Radebeul, Radebeul
  • 1990: 'Aatifi', Ministry of Culture, Kabul, Afghanistan
  • 1989: 'Aatifi', Kabul University, Kabul, Afghanistan

Awards and grants

  • 2018: Recognition award of the city of Hamm, 'Here and Now - Current Art in Westphalia', Gustav-Lübcke-Museum, Hamm
  • 2017: Aldegrever Society grant, Münster
  • 2012: 5th Leipzig Collotype Symposium 2012, Leipzig
  • 2012: International Graphics Symposium Zwickau, Zebra 5, Kunstverein Zwickau
  • 2009: Scholarship Schleswig-Holstein State Cultural Center Salzau
  • 2008: Scholarship 18th Saxon Printing Symposium, Leipzig
  • 2001: Scholarship at Künstlerhaus Schwalenberg, Schwalenberg
  • 1997: Scholarship in the studios of Moritzburg Castle, Moritzburg
  • 1991: 1st prize of the Afghan artists' association Hakim Naser Khesraw Balkhi
  • 1990: 1st prize, Afghan Ministry of Culture
  • 1989: 1st prize from the Afghan Ministry of Culture

Working in museums and collections

  • Museum of Islamic Art in the Pergamon Museum Berlin / National Museums in Berlin / Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation
  • Kupferstich-Kabinett / Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden
  • Municipal art collection Radebeul
  • Schleswig-Holstein regional cultural center in Salzau
  • Collection of the Kunstverein Zwickau e. V.
  • Zwickau municipal art collections

Private collections in Afghanistan (Kabul), Australia (Melbourne), Belgium (Brussels), Germany (Berlin, Bielefeld, Ostwestfalen-Lippe region, Radebeul, Dresden, Moritzburg, Munich, Kiel, Stuttgart), France (Paris), Canada (Toronto) , Latvia (Riga), Switzerland (Bern) and the USA (Boise / Idaho, Virginia).

literature

  • Kunibert Bering, Rolf Niehoff: Horizont 1, Bilder der Gegenwart - Globalisierung und Migration, in: Horizonte der Bild-Kunst-Geschichte, Volume 1, 1st edition, Athena-Verlag, Oberhausen 2018.
  • Julia Thieke: Between lapis lazuli and lithium. Artist portrait Aatifi. In: Art & Material , November / December 2016.
  • Martina Bauer (Ed.): Aatifi - News from Afghanistan. Catalog, Kerber Verlag, Bielefeld / Berlin 2015, ISBN 978-3-7356-0114-8 .
  • Kunstverein Zwickau eV (Ed.): International Graphics Symposium Zwickau Zebra 5th Catalog, Zwickau 2013.
  • boesner GmbH holding + innovations (publisher): Art Worlds - 100 artists, 1,000 worlds. Witten 2011.
  • Graphic Museum Stiftung Schreiner (Ed.): From imperial blue to luxury black. Catalog, Verlag Grafik Museum Stiftung Schreiner, Bad Steben 2011.
  • Friederike Schir, Reiner Kuhn, Manuel Schroeder, Inga Schubert-Hartmann (eds.): METAKOM. Catalog, Kettler, Bönen / Westphalia 2011.
  • Jeanette Rössler, Reinhard Rössler (Ed.): Symposion 2008. Working documentation 18th Saxon Print Graphics Symposium, Künstlerhaus Hohenossig, workshops for artistic printmaking. Passage-Verlag, Leipzig 2008.
  • Aatifi, Martina Bauer (Ed.): Aatifi - Painting Graphics. Catalog, Bielefeld 2008.
  • Federal Association of Visual Artists, District Association of Ostwestfalen-Lippe eV (Ed.): Art is not a luxury. Westfalen Verlag, Bielefeld 2005.
  • Large district town of Radebeul, Education and Culture Office (ed.): Radebeul artists. Self-published by Stadtgalerie Radebeul, Radebeul 2000

Films about Aatifi

  • “Calligraphy - Aatifi”, film about the origin and development of calligraphy and Aatifi's scriptural art, Filmhaus Bielefeld eV, realized in 2014/2015 for the solo exhibition “Aatifi - News from Afghanistan” in the Pergamon Museum Berlin
  • “Aatifi”, filmic artist portrait, department of media production at the Ostwestfalen-Lippe University of Applied Sciences, realized in 2014/2015 for the solo exhibition “Aatifi - News from Afghanistan” at the Pergamonmuseum Berlin

Articles and web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Martina Bauer, Stefan Weber: Mysterious forms and lines I: An abstract-dynamic visual language. Leaflet for the exhibition “Aatifi - News from Afghanistan”. Museum of Islamic Art in the Pergamon Museum Berlin, 2015.
  2. ↑ Stefan Weber in: Martina Bauer (Ed.): Aatifi - News from Afghanistan. Catalog, Kerber Verlag, Bielefeld / Berlin 2015, ISBN 978-3-7356-0114-8 , inside flap cover.
  3. ↑ Elke Vogel: The five exhibition tips of the week. (No longer available online.) In: art Das Kunstmagazin online. July 2, 2015, archived from the original on March 28, 2016 ; Retrieved July 2, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.art-magazin.de
  4. ↑ art - the art magazine . Exhibitions, The Calendar, September 2015.
  5. ^ Stefan Weber: Strange-familiar and dynamic - aesthetics and cultural background in the work of Aatifi. In: Martina Bauer (Ed.): Aatifi - News from Afghanistan. Catalog, Kerber Verlag, Bielefeld / Berlin 2015, ISBN 978-3-7356-0114-8 , p. 10.
  6. ↑ Martina Bauer, Stefan Weber: Aatifi - News from Afghanistan: Exhibition announcement. State Museums in Berlin, Prussian Cultural Heritage, April 15, 2015, accessed on April 15, 2015 .
  7. ↑ Venetia Porter: A constant passion for form. In: Martina Bauer: Maraka with Aatifi. In: Martina Bauer (Ed.): Aatifi - News from Afghanistan. Catalog, Kerber Verlag, Bielefeld / Berlin 2015, ISBN 978-3-7356-0114-8 , p. 18.
  8. ↑ Aatifi in: Martina Bauer: Maraka with Aatifi. In: Martina Bauer (Ed.): Aatifi - News from Afghanistan. Catalog, Kerber Verlag, Bielefeld / Berlin 2015, ISBN 978-3-7356-0114-8 , p. 122.
personal data
SURNAME Aatifi
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Afghan-German artist and calligrapher
DATE OF BIRTH December 12, 1965
PLACE OF BIRTH Kandahar