“Juggled”, a new collection of mixed media paintings by Tarek El-Sheikh, is currently on show at the UBUNTU gallery. By subtly taking on various human expressions in these paintings, the figure of the clown becomes a stand-in for the human condition in Egypt. Represented as happy, miserable or pensive, the clown serves as a representation of the effect of current social and political realities on the Egyptian people. The artist has portrayed his clown in pencil, ink, and paint. With each medium he uses, always placing the clown at the centre, El-Sheikh develops different styles to represent different emotional conditions of the clown. The clown is depicted mid-dance in ink-jubilant ecstasy; he is glum in dark blues and greys. As El-Sheikh moves more towards abstracting the physical outlines and features of the clown, the body becomes bigger and more heavyset, as if physically manifesting the troubles that upset it. Born in 1969, El-Sheikh is a 1993 Faculty of Art Education, Helwan University graduate. He has given multiple solo exhibitions, and been included in group exhibitions both locally and regionally. The exhibition is on view until 9 March