
Noor Soussi
Head of Department
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Provenance:
Property from the collection of AbdulMagid Breish, London
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
Flowers in Pot is a sombre and emotive still life by Zeinab al-Sageny, which predates the nostalgic paintings of The Presence of Place series [see opposite]. While still-life paintings are frozen in time, which allows the painter to focus on space, place, and detail, there is an urgency in this work due to the waning of the fresh flowers. Some of the vibrant yellow and orange flowers are standing tall, yet some droop slowly towards the table, reminding us that time moves on, and life and death persist, even in a still life. Expertly rendering texture and composing with warm tones and gentle hints of light and shadow, Sageny's work has a suggestion of "home", a place that is ageing and tired, but nevertheless continues to bloom.
-Mysa Kafil-Hussain