b. 1989, Albuquerque, USA; lives between New Mexico and Dubai
Lena Kassicieh is Palestinian-American ceramicist and mixed media artist currently living between New Mexico and Dubai. Her ceramic pieces and collages, while imaginative and energetic, are often inspired by mundane...
Lena Kassicieh is Palestinian-American ceramicist and mixed media artist currently living between New Mexico and Dubai. Her ceramic pieces and collages, while imaginative and energetic, are often inspired by mundane objects from everyday life; cotton candy being sold on the street, a dog’s tongue lapping outside the open car window, or laundry hanging out to dry. While living in an apartment in Dubai during COVID, Kassicieh was forced to utilize the limited supplies available to her to continue creating. Using old magazines, newspapers, markers and a pair of scissors, she created this mixed media collage as a way to remedy the confusion and anxiety over the state of the world. This cathartic process gave way to a composition that is both imagined and real, a visual artifact of the reality of isolation.
Kassicieh grew up between New Mexico and Amman, and received a MS in Cultural and Social Anthropology from the University of Amsterdam. In 2017 she co-founded Daftar Asfar, a collaborative sketchbook project based in the Middle East. She has participated in exhibitions in the Middle East and the United States, including Women’s Work at Ghostwolf Gallery, Albuquerque (2018), Daftar Asfar with Art Dubai UAE (2019) and a group exhibition at The Studio in Amman, Jordan (2014). Kassicieh was formerly the communications manager of Amman Design Week, and managing editor of several lifestyle, art and cultural magazines and websites.