Nael Hanna

Nael Hanna was born in Nineveh, Northern Iraq in 1959. He grew up in a diverse mix of culture - Iraqui, Greek, and Syrian Christian Orthodox. He showed a keen interest in art from an early age, spending much of his childhood studying and drawing animals, birds and people. At just 19 years of age, Nael was drafted into the army to serve in the Iraq-Iran war. He continued to paint whilst in the military and was awarded a scholarship from the Ministry of Education in Baghdad to study art in Britain. He initially studied for a language and foundation art course at Southampton, before being accepted for a degree in Fine Art at Duncan Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee, after which he was offered a residency at the prestigious Hospitalfield in Arbroath. During this time, Nael developed his passion for the east coast of Scotland with its constantly changing weather and light over the dramatic coast lines. After graduating in 1989, Nael travelled to Florence on another fine art scholarship, ... [more]