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Lot Essay
An acclaimed sculptor and painter of the Third Generation in Modern Egyptian art history, Gamal El-Seguini rebelled in the course of his career against the conventional art styles of his predecessors and praised artistic and stylistic innovation, in particular with the establishment of the Artist's Voice group that reunited a great number of contemporary artists.
Born in Cairo in 1917, El-Seguini grew up in the district of Bab al-Shi'riya, a neighbourhood famous for its jewellers and craftsmen, where Western culture, Eastern traditions and communities from different religions cohabited harmoniously. The environment in which El-Seguini spent his early years as an artist undeniably influenced his works as he expressed his interest in religious and folkloric symbolism and as such, used a hybrid imagery.
Graduated from the Higher School of Fine Arts in Cairo, El-Seguini settled in Paris at the end of the 1930s where he discovered the works of Rodin and Bourdelle while pursuing his studies and in 1947, he earned a scholarship to go to Rome where he received a diploma in Sculpture and Medal Arts. While in Paris, amid the rise of nationalism that preceded the outbreak of the Second World War, El-Seguini began to concern himself with historic events, their romantic interpretation and their effects on his own artistic exploration. His approach to art thus became evidently socio-political and upon his return to his homeland, El-Seguini was known as a social-realist artist who for many years, sustained his position as the privileged sculptor of the official line, firmly associated with the revolutionary era.
While sculpture was his favoured medium, El-Seguini was also a great painter. The present work is a charming portrait of the artist's wife, painted in 1951, and her stature is reminiscent of the Pharaonic art; her head is depicted in profile while her upper body is in front view and as such, El-Seguini paints in accordance with ancient Egyptian notions. The colourful geometric patterns also allude to Egypt's prehistoric cave paintings and the later paintings on tempera found on the walls of certain tombs made for the noble societies of the time. Her grace and almond-shaped eyes, her dark hair and her angular features notably remind us of the artist's aesthetic heritage while the doves that surround her add a spiritual feel to the painting. As such, El-Seguini's romantic expression and emotionalism, his passion for history and folkloric customs, but also his modern style influenced by the Western art trends that he encountered while in Europe are echoed through this captivating and exceptional portrait of his beloved wife.
Born in Cairo in 1917, El-Seguini grew up in the district of Bab al-Shi'riya, a neighbourhood famous for its jewellers and craftsmen, where Western culture, Eastern traditions and communities from different religions cohabited harmoniously. The environment in which El-Seguini spent his early years as an artist undeniably influenced his works as he expressed his interest in religious and folkloric symbolism and as such, used a hybrid imagery.
Graduated from the Higher School of Fine Arts in Cairo, El-Seguini settled in Paris at the end of the 1930s where he discovered the works of Rodin and Bourdelle while pursuing his studies and in 1947, he earned a scholarship to go to Rome where he received a diploma in Sculpture and Medal Arts. While in Paris, amid the rise of nationalism that preceded the outbreak of the Second World War, El-Seguini began to concern himself with historic events, their romantic interpretation and their effects on his own artistic exploration. His approach to art thus became evidently socio-political and upon his return to his homeland, El-Seguini was known as a social-realist artist who for many years, sustained his position as the privileged sculptor of the official line, firmly associated with the revolutionary era.
While sculpture was his favoured medium, El-Seguini was also a great painter. The present work is a charming portrait of the artist's wife, painted in 1951, and her stature is reminiscent of the Pharaonic art; her head is depicted in profile while her upper body is in front view and as such, El-Seguini paints in accordance with ancient Egyptian notions. The colourful geometric patterns also allude to Egypt's prehistoric cave paintings and the later paintings on tempera found on the walls of certain tombs made for the noble societies of the time. Her grace and almond-shaped eyes, her dark hair and her angular features notably remind us of the artist's aesthetic heritage while the doves that surround her add a spiritual feel to the painting. As such, El-Seguini's romantic expression and emotionalism, his passion for history and folkloric customs, but also his modern style influenced by the Western art trends that he encountered while in Europe are echoed through this captivating and exceptional portrait of his beloved wife.