Biography

Hussain Qassim Sunni / Manama / 1938 – 1998

He possessed artistic talent since childhood, and his artistic abilities began to shine after he entered primary school. His brother, Ahmed Sunni, helped him develop his talent. In the beginning of his artistic journey, he adopted an academic style in dealing with color and brushwork. He used to paint natural landscapes that he observed, and would depict perspective as he saw it — as a unique stylistic approach. He began creating art based on the stories his art teacher told, and he reproduced some artworks by European artists from the Impressionist school. He was passionate about visiting foreign art exhibitions in Bahrain despite his young age. Through these visits, he became familiar with different painting themes — especially those drawn from the local environment, but rendered in a modern style somewhat close to Impressionism. He was a skilled artist with a distinctive personal style. His colors were calm, and his subjects were selected from popular and maritime themes. His works were cheerful and joyful. When Hussain joined the College of Fine Arts in Baghdad, he was one of its outstanding students — due to the experience and skills he had acquired before entering the college. His later works consisted of color compositions in which earthy tones drawn from the local environment disappeared. Instead, the colors became delicate, transparent, and poetic. He also attempted to incorporate Arabic calligraphy as an artistic means to express the Eastern atmosphere and Islamic art.