During an exceptional cultural evening, an exhibition by Iraqi artist Dr. Sabih Kalash titled “Gilgamesh.. the Epic of Eternity” was opened on Monday July 21st 2025 on the Iraqi Business Council Hall as part of the activities of IBC (Ibdaa) Cultural Program.
The exhibition was inaugurated under the patronage and attendance of the Ambassador of the Republic of Iraq to Jordan, H.E Omar Al-Barazanji, and attendance of IBC Deputy Chairman & Secretary-General, Dr. Saad Naji, and a number of IBC members, IBC CEO, in addition to an elite Iraqi and Jordanian cultural, academic, artistic figures.
The ceremony began with a welcome speech by IBC Director General, followed by a speech by the sponsor of the event, H.E the Iraqi Ambassador, Mr. Al-Barazenji, who lauded the importance of the exhibition to revive the rich Mesopotamian heritage. He expressed pride in IBC role as to supporting culture and arts, commending the profound artistic message conveyed by the exhibition.
For his part, Dr. Kalash gave an intellectual presentation on the philosophy of the exhibition.. the fruit of three years of artistic effort and research, aiming to provide a contemporary reading of “Gilgamesh Epic”, the oldest epic text in the human history. The exhibition relies on Sumerian and Acadian symbols and connotations, transformed by the artist to works of art resembling the ancient clay tablets in an attempt to evoke major existential questions on life, death, immortality and loss.
When concluding his speech, the artist thanked the Iraqi Business Council and “Ibdaa” Program on adopting and supporting the authentic Iraqi art, and its active role in highlighting the Mesopotamian cultural identify.
This was followed by a tour in the exhibition, during which the artist presented a detailed explanation on his works and paintings, interacting with the audience, who expressed great admiration on the level of artistic presentation and the philosophical disposition of the works.
This exhibition reaffirms IBC commitment to supporting the cultural and artistic creativity as part of its societal and humanitarian message and strengthening the cultural communication between Iraq and Jordan.
