Shakir Hassan Al Said: A Pioneer of Modern Iraqi Art Early Life and Education Born: 1925 in Samawah, Iraq. Shakir Hassan Al Said was a multifaceted artist – painter, sculptor, writer, philosopher, art critic, and historian. He received his degree in Social Science from the Higher Institute of Teachers in Baghdad (1948). Furthered his artistic training with a diploma in painting from the Institute of Fine Arts in Baghdad (1954…