Omar Hamdi, better known by his artistic name Malva, was a Syrian-Kurdish painter whose career bridged the Middle East and Europe. Born in 1951 in Tel Naief, in the northeastern Syrian province of Al-Hasaka, Hamdi showed an early passion for painting, developing his practice as a teenager. At the age of 17, he left home with his paintings and moved to Damascus, where he worked as a graphic artist for the Syrian press and as an art critic, writing on artistic trends and cultural issues. He also held a position with the Ministry of Education, further grounding his early career in both artistic creation and criticism.

In the mid-1970s, Hamdi spent a brief period in Beirut, but the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War forced him to leave. In 1978, traveling under a false passport, he escaped the conflict and settled in Vienna, Austria. There he pursued formal studies, earning a master’s degree from the University of Stattsburger, and established himself as a full-time professional artist. He would go on to obtain Austrian nationality and became a member of the General Federation of Austrian Artists, the Künstlerhaus Wien, and UNESCO.

Hamdi’s artistic practice evolved over the decades, reflecting both his Syrian-Kurdish heritage and his European surroundings. His work spans a wide range of styles and subjects: expressive figurative painting rooted in Orientalist traditions, abstract canvases incorporating elements from nature and geometry, and later, impressionistic landscapes that brought him considerable commercial success. His ability to navigate between realism, abstraction, and impressionism underscored his versatility and deep engagement with the possibilities of painting.

His works were widely exhibited in galleries and museums across Europe, North America, and the Middle East, including the Arnot Gallery in New York, which represented his work, and the Wally Findlay Gallery. His paintings are held in both public and private collections worldwide, notably at the National Museum in Aleppo, the Austrian Central Bank in Vienna, and numerous institutions and private collections in the United States, Canada, Austria, Germany, France, Italy, Holland, Japan, Sri Lanka, and Russia. His art was also reproduced in postcards and posters by major publishing houses, ensuring broad international circulation.

Throughout his life, Omar “Malva” Hamdi remained devoted to art as his central pursuit. From his beginnings in Syria to his established career in Vienna, his journey reflects the resilience of an artist navigating displacement, cultural exchange, and the evolving global art market. Today, he is remembered as one of the most significant Syrian-Kurdish painters of his generation, whose works continue to resonate in both regional and international contexts.