Nuha al Radi

Nuha al-Radi was an Iraqi artist and writer who was known for her ceramic murals, paintings, sculptures, and her memoir Baghdad Diaries, which chronicles her experiences of living through the first Gulf War and the sanctions that followed. She was born in 1941 in Baghdad, into a distinguished family that included diplomats, politicians, and intellectuals. She studied art in London and Beirut, and exhibited her works in various countries. She also taught at the American University of Beirut. She returned to Baghdad in 1980, and witnessed the Iran-Iraq War, the Gulf War, and the effects of the embargo on the Iraqi people. She began writing a diary in English in 1991, which was later published as Baghdad Diaries in 1998. The book was translated into several languages and received critical acclaim for its vivid and humorous account of the hardships and absurdities of war and exile. She also used the debris of war to create sculptures that she called eco-sculpture. She died in 2004 in Beirut, from leukemia that she believed was caused by the depleted uranium used by the allies in the Gulf War. She is remembered as a talented and versatile artist, and a courageous and witty writer, who offered a unique perspective on the history and culture of Iraq.¹