Mohanna Durra (1938–2021)
Mohanna Durra (1938–2021) was a pioneering Jordanian painter whose profound influence shaped Jordanian modern art and art education in the region. Born in Amman to a Lebanese father and Turkish mother, Durra grew up in a distinctive red hilltop villa near Amman’s Roman amphitheatre, a setting that sparked his early fascination with the mystical and the unseen. A rebellious youth passionate about drawing, he received his initial art training under George Aleef, a former Russian officer, who instilled in him the fundamentals of watercolour, drawing, painting, and European perspective. Subsequent influence came from Dutch painter William Hallowin, who introduced him to Rembrandt and the Dutch school, igniting an enduring obsession with light in art.
In 1954, Mohanna Durra became the first Jordanian to attend the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome. Though disillusioned by formal academic instruction, he committed himself to studying classical art through museums and churches. After graduating in 1958, he returned to Amman, teaching art history at the Teachers’ Training College and establishing the Fine Arts Section at Amman’s Department of Culture and Art in 1964. In 1970, he founded the Jordan Institute of Fine Arts, serving as its first director, and was also the first Jordanian artist to establish an art studio for teaching local students.
Durra introduced Cubism, abstraction, and expressionism into Jordanian visual arts, notable for his bold use of form and colour, expressive brushwork, cubist geometries, and a masterful interplay of light. His works frequently featured portraits and scenes reflecting Arab culture, including Bedouin faces, rendered with a dynamic freedom and vibrant color palette. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, he split time between Jordan and Rome, further experimenting with abstraction and cubism.
Internationally recognised, Durra held solo exhibitions in prominent cultural centres including Rome, Florence, the former USSR, Washington DC, Venice Biennale, the National Museum of Fine Arts in Malta, Saint Petersburg, Vienna’s Austrian Parliament Central Hall, Qatar’s Ministry of Culture and Heritage, Bahrain National Museum, and Istanbul’s Pera Museum. His art is included in significant national and international collections such as those of the Vatican, the Imperial Court of Japan, President of the Philippines, Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, David Rockefeller, major Jordanian institutions including the National Gallery of Fine Arts and the University of Jordan, as well as Middle Eastern collections like the Dalloul Foundation, Barjeel Foundation and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
His diplomatic and cultural roles were extensive: he served as Press Attaché and Advisor at the Jordanian Embassy in Rome; Director General at Jordan’s Department of Culture and Arts; Director of Cultural Affairs at the League of Arab States; and Ambassador of the League to Rome and Moscow. He also taught at the Faculty of Arts and Design, University of Jordan, where he was a professor from 2003 to 2018 and served as President of the Association of Jordanian Plastic Artists.
Durra received numerous prestigious honours, including the Knight of the Holy Order of San Silvestro by Pope Paul VI in 1965, Jordan’s Al Kawkab Decoration from King Hussein in 1970, Italy’s Golden Medal of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage in 1978, the Golden Pioneer Medal from the Union of Arab Artists in 1980, the Order of the Star of Italian Solidarity in 2006, and a postal stamp issued in his honour by Jordan in 2002. His legacy comprises his role as an artistic pioneer, educator, and ambassador for Arab art, with a lasting impact on the development of modern art in Jordan and the wider region.