Mustafa Saeed Mustafa Saeed
Mustafa Saeed (b. 1989) is a Somali-born artist based in Hargeisa, Somaliland. His multidisciplinary work spans photography, graphics, and sound, blending poetic symbolism with socio-political critique to address themes such as war, conflict, and the environment.
A prominent voice in contemporary Somali art, Mustafa is the founder of Fankeenna, a youth-led art platform in Hargeisa that serves as a studio, gallery, and workspace for local artists. He is also a contributor to Everyday Africa, a collective of photographers dedicated to portraying the diverse and everyday experiences across the African continent.
Mustafa has received numerous awards and fellowships, including the 2022 ART WORKS Projects’ Emerging Lens Mentorship Program grant and a 2015 grant from the Arab Documentary Photography Program, supported by the Arab Fund for Arts and Culture, Magnum Foundation, and Prince Claus Fund. His work has been exhibited internationally in prestigious venues, such as the Photoville Festival in New York (2024), AFRICA FOTO FAIR in Abidjan (2022), and the Photo Vogue Festival in Milan (2022).
His past exhibitions include major group shows like UNSEEN Photo Fair (Amsterdam), Lumieres d’Afriques (Paris), and AddisFotoFest (Addis Ababa). He has also collaborated with leading international media outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, BBC, Wall Street Journal, and The Guardian, where his striking visuals and narratives have reached a global audience.
In addition to his exhibitions and media contributions, Mustafa’s work continues to push the boundaries of visual storytelling, offering a profound exploration of the human condition amid the complexities of conflict and environmental change. He is a collaborator and contributor to the ongoing research project, The Anarchist Citizenship, presented at Framer Framed in October 2024.
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