Aktham Alsayegh

Lives and works in Los Angeles, CA, USA

Artist statement

Art helps us balance the weightiness of life experience with the liberation and renewal of the human spirit. Along the journey of growing up in war-torn Iraq ruled by a dictator and fleeing to the USA in 2012 as a refugee, I discovered that art was the best outlet to express my feelings and observations without fear of persecution. I’ve always believed that art should be an educational, peaceful vehicle for spreading love and community and for eliminating hatred and selfishness. My acrylic and oil paintings capture life’s nuances and polarities by depicting social justice topics through an abstract-impressionist-magical realism lens. Above all, I want my paintings to serve as healing spaces for viewers to process conflict, so I aim to capture the spectrum of human experience and feeling—from sadness, despair, poverty, and insecurity to happiness, hope, prosperity, and love.

Artwork