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Abdul Abdullah

From Alfawiki
Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Abdul Abdullah, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 1 December 2025
Abdul Abdullah
Born1986
Perth, Australia
OccupationMultidisciplinary artist
Years active2008–present
Known forPainting, photography, video, installations, performance art

Abdul Abdullah (born 1986) is a multidisciplinary artist based in Sydney, Australia, and the younger sibling of fellow artist Abdul-Rahman Abdullah. He has been shortlisted multiple times for prestigious awards such as the Archibald Prize, Wynne Prize, and Sulman Prize. Abdullah’s challenging artworks explore political issues and themes of identity, particularly focusing on the experience of being a Muslim in Australia, social exclusion, and marginalization.

Early life and education

Abdullah was born in Perth in 1986 and is the younger brother of Abdul-Rahman Abdullah (born 1977), who lives in rural Western Australia. Their mother is of Malay descent, their father is Anglo-Australian, and the family follows Islam.

On his father's side, Abdullah represents the seventh generation of Australians, with ancestors arriving aboard the convict vessel Indefatigable two centuries ago. Notably, two of his grandfathers served in the Second World War in New Guinea.

He completed his undergraduate studies at Curtin University in 2008 and later obtained a Master of Fine Arts degree from UNSW Art and Design in 2017.

Career

In April 2015, the Art Gallery of Western Australia held a "WA Focus" exhibition featuring both Abdullah brothers, which examined their upbringing as Muslims in Australia. The events following 9/11 had a profound impact on Abdul Abdullah’s artistic practice, inspiring works such as the series Entertainers (Kanye, Beyoncé and Madonna), which was controversially misunderstood by some as endorsing terrorism.

In September 2015, Abdullah delivered a talk at TedX Sydney addressing how his identity became politicised after 9/11 and discussing the effects of the war on terror on his family.

His 2016 portrait of Craig Campbell—a former NSW Police officer known for defending Middle Eastern men during the 2005 Cronulla riots—was shortlisted for the Archibald Prize, marking Abdullah’s third time as a finalist.

A solo exhibition held at UNSW Galleries in 2017 invited audiences to reconsider stereotypes about young Muslims through perspectives outside their community.

At the beginning of 2018, Abdullah took part in Waqt al-tagheer: Time of change at ACE Open during the Adelaide Festival. Curated jointly by his brother Abdul-Rahman, this exhibition featured eleven Muslim Australian artists exploring identity through pieces like Journey to the West and Wedding.

His politically charged artworks were also included in the travelling exhibition Violent Salt (2019–2020), where he depicted Australian soldiers adorned with smiley face emojis. These provocative images sparked political controversy, threats directed at Abdullah and gallery personnel, and demands from local authorities for their removal.

During the 2020 Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art, Abdullah presented Understudy, an installation showing an ape clothed and seated alone in a theatre. In June that year, he participated in Artspace Sydney’s 52 Actions project by showcasing his text-based tattoos that convey his political beliefs.

From May through July 2022, both Abdullah brothers exhibited alongside Tracey Moffatt at Ngununggula gallery located in NSW’s Southern Highlands. The exhibition titled Land Abounds highlighted varied viewpoints within Australian art history.

Artistic approach and motifs

Abdullah engages in diverse mediums including painting, photography, video, installations, and performance art.

Describing himself as an "outsider among outsiders" due to his Muslim and Malay heritage, he delves into the societal experience of "the Other." His art predominantly addresses marginalized minority communities, with a particular focus on young Australian Muslims confronting multicultural realities. Instead of concentrating on religious doctrines, his exploration centers on feelings of displacement and estrangement linked to migration into countries where Muslims form a minority.

He collaborates with artists throughout the Asia Pacific region and expresses respect for the work of Tracey Moffatt. During the 2022 exhibition Land Abounds, which showcased pieces by both Abdullah siblings alongside Moffatt’s video art, Abdul-Rahman Abdullah commented:

Abdullah creates thought-provoking pieces designed to "foster an atmosphere conducive to critical reflection." In his 2013 work "Self-Portrait as an Ultra-nationalist," he dons a T-shirt emblazoned with "Fuck off we’re full" alongside an Australian flag. Another 2013 piece, "It Doesn't Matter How I Feel," features his hands painted entirely black except for one showing a thumbs-up and the other displaying the middle finger.

Although some of his creations have elicited adverse reactions, they have also been met with commendation, particularly from military veterans in response to his Violent Salt series, which initiated conversations about the treatment of veterans.

Additional engagements

In November 2025, Abdullah served as one of three judges on the ABC Television series Portrait Artist of the Year.

Honors and accolades

Abdullah received the Blake Prize for Human Justice in 2011 for his photographic self-portrait "Them and Us," which depicted himself alongside his brother, featuring a tattoo combining the Southern Cross with an Islamic crescent moon and star.

He was shortlisted as a finalist for the 2016 Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship.

By 2020, Abdullah had achieved five Archibald Prize finalist selections: in 2011 (portrait of academic and media figure Waleed Aly), 2013 (boxer Anthony Mundine), 2014 (Aboriginal artist and activist Richard Bell), 2016 (Craig Campbell), and in 2020 with an "Untitled self-portrait."

Additionally, he has been a Sulman Prize finalist on five occasions.

In 2019, Abdullah won the inaugural Australian Muslim Artists Art Prize and was shortlisted alongside his brother Abdul-Rahman Abdullah as potential representatives for Australia at the 2019 Venice Biennale.

His artwork A Terrible Burden was shortlisted for the 2020 Wynne Prize.

The year 2021 saw him awarded a Marten Bequest Scholarship.

A portrait of Abdullah painted by Jasper Knight was selected as a finalist for the 2022 Archibald Prize.

In 2023, Abdullah’s oil painting titled Legacy assets, a panoramic piece measuring ten meters wide that critiques colonial Australian landscape painters, became a finalist for the Ramsay Art Prize at the Art Gallery of South Australia. Prominently displayed across this work is the question: "What would our public collections look like if we divested them of sex pests and paedophiles?"

Collections

Abdullah's artworks are part of collections in several distinguished institutions, including:

Selected exhibitions

His pieces have been showcased in numerous prominent exhibitions, including:

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