Saj Issa is a Palestinian American artist born in Saint Louis and raised between the Midwest and West Bank, Palestine. She received her BFA from Webster University and her MFA from the University of California, Los Angeles. Issa was one of three artists selected for the 2024 Great Rivers Biennial, which opened in September at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis and features her “Poppy Paintings”, previously highlighted in Artforum alongside a portfolio of her practice. She has held residencies at the Belger Crane Yard Studios in Kansas City, MO, and Craft Alliance in Saint Louis. Issa was the recipient of the 2022 NCECA Graduate Student Fellowship. Her work has been featured in interviews with Hyperallergic, Juxtapoz, Khama, New American Paintings, The New Yorker, and Office Magazine.