Untitled

A fervent advocate of President Gamal Abdel Nasser’s (1918-1970) ideology, Hamed Ewais mostly depicted scenes of hard labour or moments of national pride, of which the present lot is a comprehensive study that contains a number of scenes borrowed from some of the artist's most recognised masterpieces. It was originally intended for a larger work commissioned by the Alexandria Ports Authority that was never carried out. In this sea port scene, Ewais illustrated the founding principles of Nasserism, the socialist Arab nationalist political ideology that dominated Egypt the 1960s, which ultimately paved the way for other governments of the Arab diaspora. Taking up most of the left side of the composition, several fishermen are represented at work either fishing, mending nets or selling the fish, whilst two fellahin (‘peasants’) are drinking tea and smoking the nargileh, the traditional water pipe of the region. By portraying the working-class and its daily chores, the painter highlighted the main feature of the Nasserist Revolution which encouraged popular endeavour. They allude to the many activities that developed since Ancient Egypt along the banks of Nile, still considered to be the source of life, as embodied through traditional crafts or sailboats in the background. Nevertheless, Nasserism introduced a leap towards modernity, including several social reforms with regards to women’s status and education, depicted on the right side of Ewais’ composition. The obvious contrast in the clothing of the two elegant women walking towards the viewer personify the beginning of female emancipation, emblematised by the woman on the far right wearing a Western outfit that she accessorized with a veil or ‘milaya laf’ and by unconventionally revealing her arms and legs. As opposed to a third woman seen from the back covered with a black veil in the middle of the composition, the woman in the foreground wearing a floral printed blue ensemble, is uncovered. With a short Western-style dress and high heels, she proudly walks forward with assurance defying any men staring at her and holding a brown satchel suggesting she is on her way to work. Two children dressed in bright colours and carrying books seem to follow her and possibly are on their way to school, a direct reference to Egypt’s new educational reform of freely schooling children from any social background.

Despite this striking contrast between tradition and modernity, respectively divided onto the left and the right of the present work, Hamed Ewais combines these extremes into a harmonious composition to create unity, hinting at their compatibility, bringing together Egypt's old and new generations.