LOS ANGELES — At the age of nine, Iraqi artist Ali Eyal visited an amusement park in Baghdad with his mother and siblings. They rode the Ferris wheel, where his mother instructed them to memorize the city’s view, a moment that would mark Eyal’s last memory of a peaceful homeland. Shortly after, the United States initiated airstrikes, marking the start of the 2003 Iraq invasion, a conflict that deeply impacted Eyal’s life.
“We were kids, and I didn’t understand that gesture from her,” Eyal shared with Hyperallergic. “But now it’s resonating. Sometimes you need time to understand simple gestures. It takes years to detect them.” This pivotal memory inspired Eyal’s latest oil painting, “Look Where I Took You” (2026), set to exhibit at the Whitney Biennial. The piece depicts a nightmarish scene where the Ferris wheel’s cars are replaced by heads impaled on steel spokes, watched over by an armed guard.
Eyal’s work often explores themes of trauma, grief, and childlike innocence, using painting, drawing, installation, and video. Having left Baghdad a decade ago, he studied at the Institute of Fine Arts in Baghdad, worked in Lebanon and France, and relocated to Los Angeles in 2022 with his spouse, Samar Al Summary. Still, he grapples with the war’s impact on his family, particularly the disappearance of his father, who vanished during the Arba’in pilgrimage.
Eyal’s artworks frequently include text recounting childhood stories, blending truth with fiction to convey empathy. His PTSD has blurred his memories, but he uses this to create narratives that resonate with audiences. For instance, “And Look Where I Went” (2025) imagines a hot dog vendor in New York City, integrating personal and collective memories.
Though Eyal infuses beauty into his art, the darkness of his past is ever-present. Often, his scenes are illuminated by vivid sunsets, which also evoke memories of the US airstrikes at dusk. Eyal is working on a monograph about sunsets to confront his fear. Despite using art as a healing tool, recent events, like the US and Israel bombing Iran, have stirred past traumas. “I feel paralyzed. I felt like I became a kid when I looked at a TV this morning,” Eyal expressed. “The only thing that I wish for my mom, and my family, is to have rest from wars.”
