Biography

1940 • Born in the Al Hayayeek neighborhood in Muharraq, Bahrain. 1951–58 • Attends Western Primary School in Manama. 1951 • Meets the artist Abdulkarim Al Orrayed at the Western Primary School, who as his art teacher, encourages him to participate in the school’s art club; Meets artist Ahmed Al Sunni, his art teacher during his secondary school days. 1958–59 • Attends the Teachers College in Manama; graduates with a teacher diploma in 1959. 1956 • Participates in the first exhibition of the artist association, the Family of Art Amateurs. Other participating artists are Ahmed Baqer, Karim Al Bosta, Ishaq Kooheji, Rashid Al Oraifi, Ussama Salah, Ahmed Al Sunni, Aziz Zubari. The exhibition of exclusively oil paintings is held at the Uruba Club in Manama. 1957 • Participates in the art exhibition held as part of the Commercial and Agricultural Fair in Al Andalus Garden; the artist shows an artwork titled Winter Night; the exhibition is opened by Shaikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, accompanied by Charles Belgrave. 1959–72 • Art teacher at Khameez School, Salmaniya School and Al Gharbiya School; meets artist Aziz Zubari at Salmaniya School. 1960 onwards • Attends Abdulkarim Al Orrayed’s art salon at his store in Shaikh Abdulla Street; this is an informal gathering place; other participants include Karim Al Bosta, Ahmed Baqer, Rashid Al Oraifi, Rashid Swar, Hussain Al Sunni, Ahmed Nashaba. 1960s to late 1970s • Founding of Al Talib Stationery Store by Nasser Alyousif and his family; the store becomes a key supplier of artist materials, books and periodicals on art history and techniques amongst other items (exact dates not known). 1963 • Attends Alexandria University in Alexandria, Egypt for a course in geography/history; Meets the Egyptian artist Mustafa Al Bazzaz, who strongly influences the artist through his interest in local folkloric traditions. 1967 • Participates in the Middle Eastern Art exhibition organized by the British tobacco company, House of Carreras; the exhibition travels to seven Arab countries and three European countries. The exhibition opened in London, and then moved to Paris, Rome, and on to Cairo, Beirut, Amman, and Baghdad. It was a watershed exhibition in terms of exposure and cultural exchange. 1969 • Participates in an exhibition held in Kuwait organized through the association, the Family of Bahraini Artists. • His artwork Diver’s Wedding is featured in full color on the cover of the Kuwait-based magazine Al-Arabi, leading to wide-spread recognition for the artist. • Begins work on illustrations for the collection of the Bahraini poet Ali Abdulla Khalifa The Thirst of Palms, first published in 1970 in Beirut (4 editions). 1971–85 • Participates in all the exhibitions held by the Contemporary Art Society (founded in 1970). 1972–92 • General Manager and partner of the Arabia Glass & Mirrors Company. 1972 • Contributes the cover illustration for the book Where Does the Sadness Come From? on the Palestinian occupation, by the Bahraini poet Alawi Al Hashimi. • First installment of the Annual Fine Art Exhibition, held under the auspices of the newly independent Bahraini government’s Ministry of Information, is recognized as one of Bahrain’s top ten artists. 1972–96 • Yearly participation in the National Day exhibition mounted by the Ministry of Information, Bahrain; and the Annual Fine Art Exhibition at the Bahrain National Museum. 1977 • 6th Annual Fine Art Exhibition by Ministry of Information – Certificate of Merit. 1978 • 7th Annual Fine Art Exhibition by Ministry of Information – Certificate of Merit. 1979 • Receives the Delmon Award in the Annual Fine Art Exhibition in Bahrain. 1980 • Receives the Delmon Award in the Annual Fine Art Exhibition in Bahrain. • Participates in the Asilah Arts Festiva (Morocco) together with Abdulkarim Al Orrayed, Ebrahim Busaad, Kamil Barakat, and Ishaq Khunji; joins the printmaking workshop and meets Mohamed Omar Khalil, who would exert a profound influence on the artist; encounters the work of Swiss-German artist Paul Klee; orders a lithographic printing press on his return to Bahrain and begins experimentation in the medium. • Participates in the GCC Exhibition in Qatar and Singapore, together with Abulkarim Al Orrayed, Yusuf Qassim and Rashid Al Khalifa. 1981 • Participates in the GCC Cultural Week in Paris. 1982 • Joint exhibition with the artist Ebrahim Busaad about Israel’s invasion of Lebanon; held at the Alumni Club in October. • Organizes exhibition of zinc engravings in Bahrain at the Alumni Club; other participating artists Ebrahim Busaad, Abdulkarim Al Orrayed, Kamel Barakat. 1983–86 • Becomes president of the Bahrain Contemporary Art Society. 1984 • Participates in the International Biennial Exhibition of Arab Art held in Cairo. 1985 • Participates in the GCC Cultural Week in Japan. • Contributes cover illustration to the book Beginning of Love by Bahraini poet Abdulrahman Al Rafie. 1988 • Solo exhibition of zinc engravings sponsored by the Bahraini publishing, framing, and export-import trading company Dar Al Ghad, held at the Bahrain Car Parks Company Building. 1989 • Participation in the 9th Norwegian International Print Triennial. 1991 • Starts complaining of deterioration of eyesight. 1992 • Complete loss of eyesight. 1995 • Recognized in Sharjah as a pioneer in the field of the Fine Arts in the Arabian Gulf. 1998 • Solo exhibition at Albareh Art Gallery, titled “Challenge One. 2000 • Solo exhibition held at Albareh Art Gallery, titled “Retrospective Exhibition. 2001 • Receives the Al Dana Award in the Annual Fine Art Exhibition in Bahrain, the highest honor in this annual event. • Receives the Golden Palm Prize, Qatar. 2003 • Solo exhibition at Albareh Art Gallery, titled “Challenge Two.” 2004 • Solo exhibition at Albareh Art Gallery, Bahrain, titled “More Than Meets the Eye,” features exclusively linoleum prints. 2006 • The artist Nasser Alyousif passed away on 16 June.