Sponsored by prof. dr. Alaa N. Jasim (the director of the center) the center organized seminar entitled (Mohamed Gani Hikmat and his role in reviving Iraqi heritage) on Monday 12/6/2023 sited in Nabila A. Dawood gallery in the center present by number of professors searchers . the seminar presented by Msc. Teacher Leqaa A. Ashur (one of the professor’s in the center) defined
Mohamad Gani Hekmet was one Iraqi sculptor embodied Iraqi history by his golden fingers immortalized The tale of a thousand and one nights by status in Baghdad spreading in it Muhammad Ghani Hikmat was born in 1929 in the Kadhimiya neighborhood of Baghdad. He began molding things from the clay he found in his surroundings at the age of only four, and his talent was soon noticed. Muhammad Ghani Hikmat studied under the great artist Jawad Selim at the Institute of Fine Arts in Baghdad and graduated from it in 1953, then he was sent to Rome and obtained a diploma in sculpture From the Academy of Fine Arts there in 1955, he spent seven years in Italy, and in 1957 he obtained a diploma in sculpture from the Zacca Institute in Rome, after which he went to Florence and obtained a certificate of specialization in bronze casting in 1961. While in Rome, between the years 1959 And in 1961, Hikmat worked as an assistant to his friend, sculptor Jawad Selim, on the Freedom Monument project in Tahrir Square in Baghdad. Hikmat’s role was to cast the bronze figures for the memorial. After Selim’s premature death in 1961, Hekmat assumed responsibility for completing the project. He passed away in 2011.
The works of Muhammad Ghani Hikmat in the Iraqi heritage
1- Kahramana Statue: The Kahramana Statue is located in a circular square separating the Karrada and Al-Saadoun Streets in 1971.
2- Statue of Shahryar and Scheherazade: Another monument that depicts the main heroes of the stories of One Thousand and One Nights. This statue is located on the Corniche of Abu Nawas Street, overlooking the Tigris River.
3-Al-Mutanabbi Statue: It was inaugurated in 1977 opposite the National Library in central Baghdad.
4-The Magic Carpet Statue: which embodies one of the tales of One Thousand and One Nights, in front of the Ishtar Sherton Hotel, and was completed in 1989 in Baghdad.
5-Baghdad Monument: It is located in Al-Andalus Square
6- The Magic Lantern: or Aladdin’s lamp in Al-Fath Square near the National Theater in Baghdad, which was inaugurated on December 24, 2011.
7-The Iraq Revival Monument: The last works of Muhammad Ghani Hikmat are four: the first is the “Iraq Rises Again” or “Iraq Rescue” monument, which was inaugurated in 2013 after his death.
