Footnotes

Provenance:
Property from the collection of AbdulMagid Breish, London

Exhibited:
Zamalek Gallery, Panorama of Egyptian Sculpture, 2009, Cairo

Published:
Louisa Macmillan, Mysa Kafil-Hussain et others, In Vested Interests: from Passion to Patronage, The AbdulMagid Breish Collection of Arab Art, Skira, Milan, 2020
Zamalek Gallery, Exhibition Catalogue: Panorama of Egyptian Sculpture, 2009, Cairo

Gamal El Seguini's sculpture of the feminine form is superlative not only in its artistic expression but also in its physical form, as it was one of the few sculptures cast during the artist's lifetime—a rarity given that most of his sculptures were cast posthumously. This sculpture captures the perennial theme of motherhood and femininity, a motif rich with emotional depth and aesthetic resonance, prevalent across cultures and epochs in the history of art.

Bonhams is delighted to present this exquisite piece by one of Egypt's most acclaimed artists. Gamal El-Seguini was born in Cairo in 1917 and 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.

He graduated from the Higher School of Fine Arts in Cairo and then settled in Paris at the end of the 1930s where he discovered the works of Rodin and Bourdelle while pursuing his studies. In 1947, El-Seguini attained 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 WW2, 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. El Sagini was a member of the Third Generation, which rebelled against the conventional Art styles of their predecessors. In fact, El Sagini formed the group of "Sawt El Fanan" (The Artist's Voice), where many of the young artists who believed in new artistic styles were members. 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 sculpture.