W.Istanbuli,Father of Sculpture in Syria

Born in Aleppo , north Syria in 1940, Waheed Istanbuli was the first teacher of sculpture at the Fine Arts Centre.

Waheed studied the fine arts in Austria from 1961 till 1966.

In 1968, he made the”Fertility” (the biggest statue in Syria).

 It is installed at the entrance Aleppo city. In 1984, Waheed made the final touches to his great work  “Al-Battani” that stood at the entrance of Al-Raqqa city.

Waheed won a number of local, Arab and foreign awards. Many of his sculptures decorate the public squares and streets in addition to private houses in some of the country’s towns and cities.

Waheed is viewed by arts critics as one of the founders of contemporary Syrian art of sculpture.

He   was renowned for his small-size sculptures in addition to large-size ones including Al-Battani and Fertility.

Old and modern prominent Arab dignitaries drew Waheed’s attention .Hence, he exerted strenuous efforts to make them in the hall of fame through his sculptures.

Waheed Istanbuli passed away in Aleppo in 1994 after a long suffering from kidney disease.

Maysa Wassouf