Nuha Saad is a Sydney based artist working in the areas of sculpture and public art. Saad has successfully completed over ten public art projects and her works feature in public buildings and urban renewal projects, including large scale commissions for Councils, Government Agencies and private developers.
Saad is intrigued by how our thoughts and behaviour are often influenced by unconscious reactions to spatial and colour stimuli. She believes in the positive and transformative power of colour and is fascinated by the possibilities colour combinations present and our immediate emotional responses to colour. In Saad’s works ordinary architectural elements are de- contextualised and reworked to explore how spatial features and colour can work together to construct a sense of place or cultural identity.
Nuha Saad completed a Master of Visual Arts by Research at Sydney College of the Arts, University of Sydney; a Graduate Diploma Education at University of Sydney; and a Bachelor of Visual Arts at City Art Institute (now UNSW Art and Design).
Saad has exhibited extensively in both solo and group exhibitions nationally and has been awarded an Australia Council New Work Grant, a Studio Residency with the NSW Ministry of the Arts at Artspace, the Pat Corrigan Artist Grant and the City Art Institute Sculpture Award. Saad has been short-listed for numerous prizes nationally and in 2022 has been short-listed for the Beechworth Contemporary Art Award (VIC), the Deakin University Small Sculpture Award (VIC) and the Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize (NSW).
Recent exhibitions and projects include Razzle Dazzle Chroma at James Makin Gallery (VIC), Women in Abstraction, ANZ Gallery (VIC) and Expander 1 – Colour, Stala Contemporary (WA). Nuha recently completed a large-scale public art commission for Cumberland Council in Western Sydney (NSW) and Create NSW and she was featured in two publications: Artist Profile 59 Issue, in a feature story An Archaeology of the Suburbs written by Courtney Kidd and Art Guide May/June 2022 edition, in a feature story Structures of Colour written by Briony Downes.
Nuha Saad is represented by James Makin Gallery in Melbourne VIC.
(Photo Credit: Anna Kucera for Artist Profile)
NUHA SAAD CURRICULUM VITAE
Nuha Saad CV (pdf)
EDUCATION
1999 MVA, Sydney College of the Arts, University of Sydney
1991 Graduate Diploma Education, University of Sydney
1988 BVA, City Art Institute (now UNSW Art and Design)
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS (Since 2000)
2024 Colour in Form, James Makin Gallery, Melbourne VIC (upcoming)
2022 Razzle Dazzle Chroma, James Makin Gallery, Melbourne VIC
2021 The Folly of Colour, Galerie Pompom, Sydney NSW
2020 Kaleidoscope, Melbourne VIC (collaboration with Jody Kahlon)
2019 Ornamental Fancies, Galerie Pompom, Sydney NSW
2018 Then and Now, Articulate Project Space, Sydney NSW (with Michele Beevors)
2015 Glitter is going under!, AirSpace Projects, Sydney NSW (with Ali Noble)
2011 The Necessity of Ornament, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2009 Imagined Constellations, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2007 The New City Beautiful Project, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2006 Patterned Space, Esa Jaske Gallery, Sydney NSW
2005 Intersecting Geometries, Artspace, Sydney NSW (collaboration with Mimi Tong)
2004 Lines of Incidence, MOP Gallery, Sydney NSW
2003 Ripple with Blue Stripes, Gallery 4A, Sydney NSW
2003 Ripple with Green Stripes, MOP Gallery, Sydney NSW
2002 Sedan Ace +, Room 35, Gitte Weise Gallery, Sydney NSW (with Kay Wood)
2002 Sedan Ace (Annex.), Scott Donovan Gallery, Sydney NSW (with Kay Wood)
2002 Green Lake, Scots Church, Sydney NSW (with Jonathan Jones)
2001 Sedan Ace, Room 35, Gitte Weise Gallery, Sydney NSW (with Kay Wood)
2001 Sedan Ace Prelude, Block Gallery, Sydney NSW (with Kay Wood)
SELECTED PUBLIC ART COMMISSIONS, AWARDS AND GRANTS
2023 Public Art Commission, Parramatta Road Urban Amenity Improvement Program (PRUAIP), Create NSW& Cumberland Council NSW
2021 Public Art Commission, City of Sydney and Atlas Group, Alexandria Sydney NSW
2021 Public Art Commission, St Pius Public School, Enmore Sydney NSW
2019 Public Art Commission, City of Sydney and Meriton Group, Rosebery Sydney NSW
2018 Public Art Commission, City of Sydney and Meriton Group, Rosebery Sydney NSW
2017 Public Art Commission, ArtMoves for Transport for NSW, Kensington Sydney NSW
2017 Public Art Commission, City of Sydney and Meriton Group, Rosebery Sydney NSW
2017 Public Art Commission, Marrickville High School, Sydney NSW
2016 Public Art Commission, Wulaba Park for City of Sydney and Meriton Group, Green Square Sydney NSW
2016 Public Art Commission, City of Sydney and Meriton Group, Rosebery Sydney NSW
2009 Public Art Commission Jubilee Square, City of Sydney, Glebe Sydney NSW
2008 Public Art Commission Skippedy Skip Fence, City of Sydney, Glebe Sydney NSW
2005 Artist Studio Residency, NSW Ministry for the Arts, Artspace Sydney NSW
2001 New Work Project Grant, Australia Council for the Arts
2000 Artist Studio Residency, NSW Ministry for the Arts, Artspace Sydney NSW
1999 Pat Corrigan Artist Grant
1998 Sculpture Symposium, Sydney Park, Sydney NSW
SELECTED FINALIST
2023 OMNIA Art Prize, Melbourne VIC
2022 Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize, Sydney NSW
2022 Deakin University Small Sculpture Award, Melbourne VIC
2022 Beechworth Contemporary Art Award, Beechworth VIC
2021 Ravenswood Australian Women’s Art Prize, Sydney NSW
2020 Tom Bass Sculpture Prize, Sydney NSW
2019 Deakin University Small Sculpture Award, Melbourne VIC
2019 Rookwood Hidden Sculpture, Sydney NSW
2018 Deakin University Small Sculpture Award, Melbourne VIC
2017 Paramor Art + Innovation Prize, Sydney NSW
2016 Meroogal Women’s Art Prize, Meroogal NSW
2012 Blake Prize, NSW
2010 Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize, Sydney NSW
2010 RBS Royal Bank of Scotland Prize, Sydney NSW
2004 Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize, Sydney NSW
2004 Helen Lempriere National Sculpture Award, Melbourne VIC
2004 ABN AMRO Award, Sydney NSW
2003 Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize, Sydney NSW
2000 NSW Ministry for the Arts Helen Lempriere Travelling Art Scholarship, Artspace Sydney NSW
1999 NSW Ministry for the Arts Women and Arts Fellowship
1999 NSW Ministry for the Arts Helen Lempriere Travelling Art Scholarship, Artspace Sydney NSW
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS (Since 2000)
2023 Round, Wollongong Art Gallery, NSW
2023 Colour-Bind, Woollahra Gallery, Sydney NSW
2023 Into the Pink, Stala Contemporary Gallery, Perth WA
2023 Summer New, James Makin Gallery, Melbourne VIC
2022 Women in Abstraction, ANZ Gallery, Melbourne VIC
2022 Spring, James Makin Gallery, Melbourne VIC
2022 Summer New, James Makin Gallery, Melbourne VIC
2021 Sydney Contemporary at Galerie Pompom Sydney NSW
2021 Expander 1 – Colour, Stala Contemporary Gallery, Perth WA
2021 Spring1883 with Galerie Pompom, Sydney NSW
2021 Stopping by the Colour Wheel, Grace Cossington Smith Gallery, Sydney NSW
2020 The Home, Hazelhurst Arts Centre, Sydney NSW
2020 Sydney Contemporary Presents 2020
2020 SofaExpo Online Art Fair, Chicago USA
2019 MOP Projects 2003-2016, Artspace, Sydney NSW
2018 Fabstraction, Flinders Street Gallery, Sydney NSW
2018 Breathing Colours, Vandal Gallery, Sydney NSW
2017 Painting Not Painting, Galerie Pompom, Sydney NSW
2017 Our House, Grace Cossington Smith Gallery, Sydney NSW
2016 Stable, Articulate Project Space, Sydney NSW
2016 Grey Area, AirSpace Projects, Sydney NSW
2015 Openings, AirSpace Projects, , Sydney NSW
2014 reSATURATEryb, Grace Cossington Smith Gallery, Sydney NSW
2014 Domesticated, Articulate Project Space, Sydney NSW
2014 The Democracy of Drawing, AirSpace Projects, Marrickville Sydney NSW
2013 Intra-Sections, Verge Gallery, University of Sydney, Sydney NSW
2013 MOST, Garage Yard Installations, Marrickville Garage, Sydney NSW
2013 Goodnight, Peloton Gallery, Sydney NSW
2012 Saturate, Sydney College of the Arts, Sydney NSW
2012 Yellow House Pop-Up, Sydney NSW
2012 Six Years of Projects 2006 – 2012 (Part I), James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2012 Mountains and Valleys, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2011 Colouring in (my world 2.0), James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2011 Lit-up like a christmas tree VI, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2011 Fifth, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2010 Lit-up like a christmas tree V, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2010 Fourth, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2010 Colouring in (Material), James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2009 Colouring in (Paper), James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2009 9 Shades of White, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2009 Lit-up like a christmas tree IV, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2008 Artspace 24/25, Artspace, Sydney NSW
2008 Colouring In (Sculpture), James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2008 Lit-up like a christmas tree III, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2008 9 Shades of White, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2007 Our Lucky Country (Still Different), Hazlehurst Regional Gallery and Arts Centre, Sydney NSW
2007 Lit-Up II, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2007 Contemporary Collection Benefactors Art Auction, Art Gallery of NSW
2007 First Anniversary (Paper), James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2007 Colouring the Landscape, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2006 Lit-Up, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2006 Our Lucky Country, Hazlehurst Regional Gallery and Arts Centre, Sydney NSW
2006 Hardware, University of Technology Sydney Gallery, Sydney NSW
2006 Lucky 7, James Dorahy Project Space, Sydney NSW
2006 We Are Australian Too, Curator Nick Tsoutas, Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre, Sydney NSW
2006 Cones of Zontact, Loose Projects, Sydney NSW
2006 Post-it, Curator Tracey Clement, Peloton Gallery, Sydney NSW
2006 Eldorado, Curated by MOP Projects, Downtown Artspace, Adelaide SA
2005 Room 35 Turns 8, Curator Gitte Weise, Gitte Weise Gallery, Sydney NSW
2005 Material Girls and Boys, Curator Barbara Flynn, Deloitte Corporate Offices, Sydney NSW
2004 A Different Group, Curator Gitte Weise, Gitte Weise Gallery, Sydney NSW
2004 ABN AMRO Artists Award Selection 4, Curator Barbara Flynn, Sydney NSW
2004 Helen Lempriere National Sculpture Award, Werribee Park, Melbourne VIC
2004 Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize, Woollahra, Sydney NSW
2004 Glacier, Touring exhibition: Benalla Art Gallery Victoria, Newcastle Regional Gallery NSW,
Queensland University of Technology Art Museum and Bond University Art Gallery QLD
2003 Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize, Woollahra, Sydney NSW
2003 MOP, MOP Gallery, Sydney NSW
2002 Blue Lotus Section 4, First Draft Gallery, , Sydney NSW
2002 Untitled, Penthouse and Pavement, Melbourne VIC
2002 1,2,3,4,4, Fanzine, Curators Nicholas Chambers and Reuben Keehan
2002 Block Fundraiser, Block Gallery, Sydney NSW
2001 Glacier, Curators Suzanne Davies and Darren Wardle, RMIT Gallery Melbourne VIC
2001 That was now, this is then, Curator Alexie Glass, Gitte Weise Gallery, Sydney NSW
2001 Reckonings, Curators Ihab Shalbak and Rea, Performance Space, Sydney NSW
2001 East of Somewhere, Curator Ihab Shalbak, Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre, Sydney NSW
2001 blue lotus section, Tin Sheds Gallery, Sydney NSW
2001 Suspended, First Draft Gallery, Sydney NSW
2000 MNCBM, Curators Nick Tsoutas and Jacqueline Phillips, Artspace, Sydney NSW
2000 D-Turn, Curator Kay Wood, Rubyayre, Sydney NSW
2000 Gravity Fails, First Draft Gallery, Sydney NSW
2000 Helen Lempriere Travelling Art Scholarship, Artspace, Sydney NSW
SELECTED REVIEWS AND MEDIA
2022 Kidd, Courtney. Archaeology of the Suburbs, Artist Profile 59, June 2022.
2022 Downes, Briony. Structures of Colour. Art Guide May/June 2022.
2021 Campbell, Amy. Exciting Australian art to buy for your home, The Australian, Jan 13.
2021 Kirkman, Kim. Somewhere into the Rainbow, Seesaw Mag, Dec 21.
https://www.seesawmag.com.au/2021/12/somewhere-into-the-rainbow
2019 Mudie Cunningham, Daniel (Editor), MOP PROJECTS: 2003-2016.
2018 Judd, Craig. Then and Now, Artlink, November 9 2018
2018 Sullivan, Laura. Public art branches out, Inner West Courier Tues Nov 13 2018 pg 25.
2018 Vibrant Marrickville High School, The Daily Telegraph, Nov 13, 2018.
2018 Murray, Elicia. The ’10-minutes-to-everywhere’ suburb: Why Waterloo has become one of Sydney’s newest hotspots,
2018 Echternach, Erika. REVIEW: Vandal Gallery’s – Breathing Colours
2017 Loughnan, Melissa. The persistence of painting, 1717 Painting/not painting Exhibition catalogue, Galerie Pompom.
2017 Bratovich, Rita. 1717 Painting/not painting. http://www.altmedia.net.au/1717-paintingnot-painting/128662
2017 Webster, Michelle. http://mysydneycbd.nsw.gov.au/news/kensington-artwork-feast-eyes
2017 Curtis, Helen. Town of East Fremantle’s Public Art Strategy
2016 Tan, Monica. Ten of the best Australian playgrounds – in pictures, The Guardian, April 14
2013 Carsley Gary. ‘Mostly Oracular Presentations’, Ten out of Ten Catalogue, MOP Projects, Mar 13.
2013 Fitzgerald, Michael. ‘Intra-Sections’, Open Gallery, Spectrum, Sydney Morning Herald, Aug 31, pg. 12.
2011 Milner, Jacqueline. ‘The Necessity of Ornament’, Exhibition Catalogue Essay.
2011 Fitzgerald, Michael. ‘NUHA SAAD, the (sydney) magazine, Sydney Morning Herald, Issue, 101/September 2011 p.105.
2009 Keehan, Reuben. Editor. Column 3, Artspace Publication.
2009 Barber, Bruce. ’24 exhibitions for 25 years’, Contemporary Visual Art + Culture Broadsheet 38 1 2009.
2008 Lam, Christine. ‘Glebe School Fence’, Public Art Journal 1.
2008 Kemp, Emma. ‘New Fence for Happy Feet’, Alternative Media Group, November 13, Issue 137, p. 3.
2008 Sansom, Marie. ‘Remembering the Days in the Glebe School Yard’’, The Glebe, November 7, p. 3.
2007 Milner, Jacqueline. Symposium: Expanded Painting. Artspace, November.
2007 Australia Council for the Arts. Beyond Region: Public Galleries in NSW.
2007 Millner, Jacqueline. ‘Our Lucky Country (Still Different)’, Hazlehurst Regional Gallery, Exhibition Catalogue.
2005 Dunn, Richard. ‘Nuha Saad & Mimi Tong: Intersecting Geometries’, Artspace Projects 2005.
2005 Walton, Natalie. ‘Yes, You Can Buy Art’, Real Living Magazine, June, p. 94-98.
2005 Smith, Leesa. ‘School’s splash of colour’, Inner West Courier, October 16, p. 56.
2005 Ratcliff, Felix. ‘First Anniversary (Paper)’, The Program, Triple J Radio, Art Review, July.
2006 Titmarsh, Mark. ‘Shapes of inhabitation: Painting in the expanded field’, Art Monthly, May, pp. 27-32.
2006 Mudie Cunningham, Daniel. ‘Our Lucky Country’, Exhibition Catalogue.
2006 Kidd, Courtney. ‘Artnotes’, Art Monthly, September 2006, p. 57.
2006 Clement, Tracey. ‘The Lucky Country’, Art Guide, November, pg. 10.
2006 Williams, Holly. ‘Our Lucky Country’, Australian Art Market Report, June, p. 30.
2006 Frost, Claire. The Program, Triple J Radio, Art Review, October.
2006 ‘Hardware’, Sydney Magazine, Sydney Morning Herald, October Issue, p. 116.
2006 Lam, Lee Tran. Cut and Paste, Fbi Radio 94.5FM Art Review.
2006 Clement, Tracey. ‘Post It: Drawing on the past’, COFA Magazine Issue 17, UNSW, Spr. 2006, p. 20.
2006 Contemporary Art Organisations of Australia Website, http://www.caos.org.au/
2006 Clement, Tracey. Art, Sydney Morning Herald, June 2.
2006 Emily, Howes. Post-It, IASPIS Calendar, http://www.iaspis.com/craft/en2/article.asp?ID=175
2006 Keehan, Reuben. Eldorado, MOP Projects Catalogue.
2004 Redmond, Helen. ‘Park Life’, Vogue Living May/June, p.178.
2004 Morrow, Christine. ‘The Blindside Effect’, Blindside Gallery Publication, 2004.
2004 McSpedden, Shelley. ‘A Different Group’, Critics Picks, Sydney Morning Herald, August 27.
2004 Muhlberger, Emma. ‘Glacier’, QUT Art Museum, Web Review. May 2004
2004 Upfront, ‘Garden Variety, QANTAS Magazine.
2003 Stowell, Jill. ‘Young Selection Warms to the Task’, Weekender, Nov 2003.
2003 Chambers, Nicholas and Keehan, Reuben Editors. 1,2,3,4,4 Fanzine.
2003 Kidd, Courtney. ‘Nuha Saad and Kay Wood’, Critics Picks, Sydney Morning Herald, Feb 23.
2001 Peterson, Tanya. ‘Fluid Geometries’, MNCBM Catalogue Essay, Artspace.
2001 Williams, Linda. ‘Reflection and Reconstruction: New Directions in Australian Painting’, Catalogue.
2001 Kidd, Courtney. ‘When junk’s no longer rubbish’, Galleries, Sydney Morning Herald, June 6.
2001 Hynes, Victoria. ‘Weird Science’, Exhibitions Metro – Sydney Morning Herald, June 22.
2001 Pitsis, Alexandra. ‘Reckonings 2001’, Eyeline, Summer 2001/2002, p.47.
2001 Hynes, Victoria. ‘Suspended’, Critics Picks, Exhibitions – Sydney Morning Herald, July 13.
2001 Jenkins, Kyle. ‘Blue Lotus Exhibition 2001’, Like Magazine 16, Spring 2001, p.56.
2001 Plate, Cassi. ‘Red Fern Reckonings’, RealTime, Oct-Nov 2001, p.28.
2001 Shalbak, Ihab. ‘Reckonings: (Re)Imagining Place’. Reckonings Catalogue, Performance Space.
2000 Kidd, Courtney. ‘First Draft’, Critics Picks, Sydney Morning Herald, August 11 & November 17.
1999 Baker, Su. ‘Dichotomies of Image & Object’, Express, V3 Issue 2 1999, p.26-7.
1998 Genocchio, Benjamin. ‘Arabmade’, Art and Text 62, July 1998, p.100.
1998 Conomos, John. ‘Between Worlds’, Arabmade Catalogue Essay, Casula Powerhouse.
1998 ‘Arab Art Targets Myths’, Canterbury-Bankstown Express, March 1998.
1997 Allatson, Paul. ‘Imagining a Fifth World’, X-Text 1:2, June 1997, pp. 48-50.
1996 James, Bruce. ‘Galleries’, The Sydney Morning Herald, Friday, August 9, p.14.
1996 Gawronski, Alex. Ten, First Draft 10 Year Anniversary, Exhibition Catalogue.
COLLECTIONS
ARTBANK
ANZ Australia
City of Sydney
Randwick City Council
Royal Melbourne Hospital
Private Collections in Australia and the US