Hikmat Naeem

Short Biography

Hikmat Naeem grew up in Suwayda, Syria, where he held his first solo exhibition in 1990 while still developing his formal training. He went on to study at the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Damascus, graduating in 1997, and later returned to the institution as a lecturer. Over the following decades, he built a sustained exhibition practice across Syria and the wider Arab world, showing work in Damascus, Suwayda, and Beirut, before extending his presence to Europe and the Gulf. He relocated to the UAE, where he has continued to exhibit actively, participating in the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial and showing at galleries in Dubai and Sharjah. His works have entered the collections of major institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art in Damascus, the National Museum in Suwayda, and the Diwani Museum of Arabic Calligraphy in Sharjah. He remains a member of the Union of Syrian Visual Artists and continues to practise and exhibit across the region.

Education

Hikmat studied at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Damascus, graduating in 1997 with a specialisation in Painting and Drawing.

Exhibitions

Hikmat has maintained an extensive solo and group exhibition record across Syria, Lebanon, the UAE, and beyond. His solo exhibitions include shows at the Cultural Centre in Suwayda (1990 and 1995), Suwayda Museum (2000), the French Cultural Centre in Damascus (2002), the Palace of Culture in Suwayda (2004), Alpha Arts Hall in Syria (2006), Ishtar Gallery in Damascus (2011), Art Form Gallery in Syria (2020), and Gallery 13 in Damascus (2021). Group and joint exhibitions include a dual exhibition at the Spanish Cultural Centre Instituto Cervantes in Damascus (2004), Artlab Gallery in Beirut (2012), a joint exhibition at Coral Beach in Beirut (2023), Firetti Gallery in Dubai (2025), a charity exhibition at Moorfields Eye Hospital Dubai (2025), and a joint exhibition at the University of Sharjah (2026). He has also participated in the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial on multiple occasions, including the Irtigaa edition (2022) and the Inscriptions edition (2022 to 2024), and has taken part in group exhibitions with Syrian and Arab artists inside Syria since 1995.

Artistic Style

Hikmat's practice brings together two distinct but complementary disciplines: painting and Arabic calligraphy. His calligraphic work is grounded in classical tradition, while his broader visual practice reflects the cultural and social landscapes of Syria and the wider Arab world. The range of venues and contexts in which he has exhibited, from national museums to cultural forums and international galleries, points to a practice that moves comfortably between the intimate and the institutional, the historical and the contemporary.

Additional Information

Hikmat served as a lecturer at the Faculty of Fine Arts (Second Faculty) from 2011 to 2015 and again in 2022, and was previously associated with the University of Damascus in a teaching capacity. He has been a member of the Union of Syrian Visual Artists since 2000. His works are held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in Damascus, the National Museum in Suwayda, and the Diwani Museum of Arabic Calligraphy in Sharjah, as well as private and public collections in Jordan, the UAE, Lebanon, Spain, France, Poland, and Switzerland.