Aya Haidar graduated with a BA in Fine Art from the Slade School of Fine Art, during which she completed an exchange program at School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC). She then went on to graduate with an MSc in NGOs and Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

International solo and group exhibitions include The Whitworth (Manchester), Kettle’s Yard (Cambridge), Cromwell Place (London), Cubitt (London), Art Berlin Contemporary (Germany), Athr Gallery (Jeddah), Bischoff Weiss (London), New Art Exchange (Nottingham), Jeddah 21,39 (KSA), Mosaic Rooms (London), Casa Arabe (Madrid), Beirut Art Week (Beirut), FIAC (Paris), Frieze Art Fair (London), Art Dubai (UAE), Abu Dhabi Art (UAE), Art Istanbul (Turkey).

Aya has been involved in numerous social engagement projects, including Kettle’s Yard, PEER, The Camden Arts Center, Shubbak Festival, Mosaic Rooms’ Together Apart: Lockdown Diaries, INIVA’s A Place for Conversation, V&A’s Stitching Borders and Record, Resist, Reframe, Tate’s Illuminating Cultures program and INIVA’s Emotional Learning Cards, as well as being selected for Hans Ulrich Obrist and Hoor Al Qasemi’s Do It Arab project (2016).
Artist Residencies include Deveron projects (Aberdeenshire), Cubitt Arts (London) and Three Rivers Trust (Bexley).

Publications include, Hole & Corner, De Fil En Aiguille by Charlotte Vannier, Tribe Magazine, Art of the Middle East, Modern and Contemporary Art from the Middle East and Iran by Saeb Eigner, Canvas, Harper’s Bazaar Art Arabia, The National, Contemporary Practices and ELLE Magazine.

Her major institutional acquisitions include the Victoria and Albert Museum (UK), Jameel Collection and the Guggenheim (Abu Dhabi) for her most recent large scale installation Highly Strung.

Aya Haidar currently lives and works in London.