Jwan Yosef, who was raised in a multi-ethnic family, has not selected a particular religion with which to identify.
Born to a Kurdish father, Ahmad Yosef, and an Armenian mother, Hiba Hammoud, the 37-year-old painter has always struggled with his identity and who he is.
Like many of us, he doesn’t enjoy being classified or put into a specific group and is all about having every possible experience.
His works of art, which are primarily based on and inspired by underrepresented groups, deal with issues of belonging and self-identification.
As a queer person with a lot of experience to draw from, Jwan retells and reframes stories and pictures that we are led to believe while drawing inspiration from his internal and external environments.
What Religion Is Jwan Yosef? Does He Follow The Muslim Faith?
Jwan Yosef is conflicted between the two religions he grew up with, Christianity and the Muslim faith, and has not yet made a decision regarding his spiritual discipline. While his father is a devout Muslim, his mother is an Armenian Christian.
In 2011, the majority of Armenians were Christians, while 87 percent of Syrians identified as Muslims, according to the CIA World Factbook.
Furthermore, it makes it more difficult to determine if he is Muslim or Christian because even his marriage did not adhere to the required traditions or standards in both faiths.
In 2017, Yosef married Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin without a formal ceremony or celebration. After dating for two years, the two made their vows public and sealed the union by signing only the paperwork that was required.
Ricky Martin Husband Jwan Yosef Has A Syrian-Armenian Ancestry
Ricky Martin’s husband Jwan Yosef was birthed in Syria to an Armenian mother and a Kurdish father in the year 1984. His parents moved to Sweden when he was two years old.
The 37-year-old actor went on to study painting at the Pernby School of Painting in Stockholm between 2004 and 2006 before transferring to the Konstfack University College of Arts, Crafts, and Design in Stockholm.
Yosef has participated in a sizable number of group shows and art festivals. In 2013, he exhibited two solo exhibits, High Notes at the Galleri Anna Thulin in Stockholm and Painting about Sex, Flesh and Violence, lol at the DIVUS Gallery in London.
Both the 2013 BEERS Contemporary Award for Emerging Art and the Threadneedle Prize exhibition featured him. He established and currently owns a studio at The Bomb Factory Art Foundation in Archway, North London.