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Lot Essay
Painted in 1971, Wa Hamaha al-Ghizlan (And the Gazelles Protected Her) is a large-scale masterpiece of Hamed Nada’s mature practice, characterised by stylised figures, symbolic motifs, and a synthesis of popular and mythic imagery to create an imagined world rooted in Egyptian cultural life. Several female figures occupy the composition, their elongated bodies reduced to angular lines and fragmented forms against a pale, desert-like ground. Seemingly unbound by gravity, the figures float across the picture plane, their extended arms and searching gestures generating a sense of movement, tension and uncertainty. Nada’s expressive brushwork heightens this dynamism, while the interplay of curved and angular lines, swirling calligraphic forms and suspended human and animal figures creates a restless, animated atmosphere. Rather than depicting a specific narrative, the composition appears to operate through an interplay of gesture, movement and suggestion, with human, animal and symbolic forms inhabiting a shared, otherworldly space.
The figures themselves are deliberately non-specific. Nada prioritised what he described as a ‘general human posture’ rather than the representation of identifiable individuals, reducing the body to an expressive vehicle for gesture and movement. Their elongated, simplified forms recall the visual language of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, while their animated poses evoke the vitality of popular folklore. This fusion of the archaic and the vernacular is characteristic of Nada’s practice, in which elements of Egyptian cultural heritage are transformed into an enigmatic visual language.
Underlying this visual language is Nada’s fascination with the less visible or ‘unknown’ dimensions of Egyptian culture, including rituals, magic, mythology and the heroes of popular epics. These visual references provided a rich source through which he explored the imaginative and psychological elements of Egyptian identity. In Wa Hamaha al-Ghizlan (And the Gazelles Protected Her), these influences converge in the combination of human, animal and textual elements. The black cat in the upper right, traditionally associated with protection and good fortune, occupies the upper right, while the tite, "wa-hamaha al-ghizlan," is inscribed directly onto the canvas, making language an integral part of the composition. The reference to gazelles further reinforces the painting’s emphasis on movement. Traditionally associated with grace, speed and agility, the animal represents the ability to navigate and adapt to the desert landscape. Together, these elements contribute to the painting’s distinctive atmosphere of movement, uncertainty and vitality, while reflecting Nada’s broader exploration of Egyptian identity through folklore, symbolism and popular imagination.
A significant example of Nada’s mature practice, Wa Hamaha al-Ghizlan (And the Gazelles Protected Her) is published in F. Ali, Description of Modern Egypt through Modern Art: Hamed Nada (in Arabic), Cairo, 1984. The painting originates from a private German collection, where it remained unseen for more than four decades, offering a rare opportunity to encounter a work from a pivotal period in Nada’s career.
Born in 1924 in Cairo, Hamed Nada is a leading figure of modern Egyptian art. The son of a religious sheikh, Nada was shaped by the historic environment of the Sayyida Zeinab neighbourhood. The grandeur of Mamluk and Ottoman monuments left a lasting impression on his imagination, while the lively atmosphere of Cairo’s markets, with their puppet shows and celebratory Moulids, enriched his artistic vision. Nada studied at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Cairo, graduating in 1951 under the guidance of leading artists including Ahmed Sabri and Youssef Kamel. In 1960, he furthered his training in mural painting at the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid, an experience that expanded his technical and conceptual range while reinforcing his commitment to Egyptian cultural identity.
Nada’s work forms part of numerous institutional collections worldwide including Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha; Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah; Museum of Modern Art, Cairo; and the Fine Art Museum of Alexandria, Alexandria.
The figures themselves are deliberately non-specific. Nada prioritised what he described as a ‘general human posture’ rather than the representation of identifiable individuals, reducing the body to an expressive vehicle for gesture and movement. Their elongated, simplified forms recall the visual language of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, while their animated poses evoke the vitality of popular folklore. This fusion of the archaic and the vernacular is characteristic of Nada’s practice, in which elements of Egyptian cultural heritage are transformed into an enigmatic visual language.
Underlying this visual language is Nada’s fascination with the less visible or ‘unknown’ dimensions of Egyptian culture, including rituals, magic, mythology and the heroes of popular epics. These visual references provided a rich source through which he explored the imaginative and psychological elements of Egyptian identity. In Wa Hamaha al-Ghizlan (And the Gazelles Protected Her), these influences converge in the combination of human, animal and textual elements. The black cat in the upper right, traditionally associated with protection and good fortune, occupies the upper right, while the tite, "wa-hamaha al-ghizlan," is inscribed directly onto the canvas, making language an integral part of the composition. The reference to gazelles further reinforces the painting’s emphasis on movement. Traditionally associated with grace, speed and agility, the animal represents the ability to navigate and adapt to the desert landscape. Together, these elements contribute to the painting’s distinctive atmosphere of movement, uncertainty and vitality, while reflecting Nada’s broader exploration of Egyptian identity through folklore, symbolism and popular imagination.
A significant example of Nada’s mature practice, Wa Hamaha al-Ghizlan (And the Gazelles Protected Her) is published in F. Ali, Description of Modern Egypt through Modern Art: Hamed Nada (in Arabic), Cairo, 1984. The painting originates from a private German collection, where it remained unseen for more than four decades, offering a rare opportunity to encounter a work from a pivotal period in Nada’s career.
Born in 1924 in Cairo, Hamed Nada is a leading figure of modern Egyptian art. The son of a religious sheikh, Nada was shaped by the historic environment of the Sayyida Zeinab neighbourhood. The grandeur of Mamluk and Ottoman monuments left a lasting impression on his imagination, while the lively atmosphere of Cairo’s markets, with their puppet shows and celebratory Moulids, enriched his artistic vision. Nada studied at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Cairo, graduating in 1951 under the guidance of leading artists including Ahmed Sabri and Youssef Kamel. In 1960, he furthered his training in mural painting at the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid, an experience that expanded his technical and conceptual range while reinforcing his commitment to Egyptian cultural identity.
Nada’s work forms part of numerous institutional collections worldwide including Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha; Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah; Museum of Modern Art, Cairo; and the Fine Art Museum of Alexandria, Alexandria.