In cooperation with “Nos Al-Donia” magazine, Al-Ahram Arts Centre hosts “Heya Asl Al Hayah” exhibition between 4 and 13 April to shed light on the outstanding artistic works of 16 female Egyptian artists. The exhibition is open to the public at reasonable prices and contains different kinds of art, including paintings, earthenware, mosaics, and photography.
The exhibition introduces a number of outstanding artists, including Ahlam Fekry, Zeinab Salem, Awatef Salah, Mervat Al Shazly, Nazly Madkour, Sherine Al Baroudy, Nevine Farghaly, Mariam Abdel Alim, and others. Some artistic works portray Egyptian heritage, while others present women as mothers and humans. Other paintings capture some beautiful landscapes and natural views.
“This year is dedicated to women. In this exhibition, I try to present 16 successful female artists from different ages and generations aiming to represent various artistic schools,” said Amany Zahran, the head of the Administration of Collectibles and Artistic Exhibitions at Al-Ahram Association and the main organiser of the exhibition.
Zahran is a journalist and artist who has held more than 15 private exhibitions and represented Egypt in various artistic events across 12 countries.
“I don’t exaggerate when I say that women are the origin of each civilisation, as she is the essence of life. Thus, I chose to introduce 16 female artists who managed to achieve outstanding success in various kinds of arts in addition to being remarkable mothers and wives,” she added.
In her opinion, choosing artists who teach in different Egyptian universities would be an added value in supporting the cause of the exhibition. “Those artists have students, friends, and relatives who would start sharing the event on social media—and, eventually, this would increase people’s awareness of it,” she noted.
Because such successful examples don’t usually receive great attention from the media, which is sometimes biased towards certain kinds of arts, this exhibition can be a positive step for bridging the gap between arts and media. Aiming to achieve this, Zahran contacted “Nos Al Donya” magazine to sponsor the event by releasing a special edition that includes a booklet, in which each artist introduces one of her outstanding artistic works.
“I was so excited when I was contacted by Zahran to participate in the exhibition,” said Zeinab Nour, an associate professor at Helwan University’s faculty of fine arts.
“We were asked to freely express any issue we want using any materials we need. This created a variety in the artistic products presented and broadened the range of the artistic orientations adopted,” Nour added.
This exhibition is the first in a series of artistic events that will be organised by Al-Ahram Association over the next few months. “I submitted an agenda for a number of artistic events that will start with ‘Mahragan Al Rasm Ala El Asfalt’, followed by an art competition in the faculty of arts and launching exhibitions for young artists with low costs,” Zahran concluded.
