Picasso gallery in Zamalek presents a thrilling exhibition of paintings by gifted artist Hassan Abdel-Fattah who is inspired in his works by ancient Egyptian and Islamic heritage with a special passion concerning the folk environment in Egypt. He is famous for his special interest in the landscape of Upper Egypt, with particular emphasis on bold colours which added vividness to his paintings and distinguished his own style. Abdel-Fattah belongs to the Ragheb Ayad school, one of Egypt's painting pioneers who used to believe that the line is the basic of the artistic development which specifies the composition of the painting and moves the eye. In his paintings, the artist creates a brilliant melange between the silent lines as in the rivers and mountains and the moving harmony as in the small colourful fishing boats with the fishermen nets in the background that breaks the regularity of the horizonatl lines of the river. The artist is artistically and intellectually influenced by the area of Fatimid Cairo where he was brought up and this is obvious in his interest in the arts of the Islamic architecture in this historical district which is peppered with a large number of mosques built by the Fatimid and the Mameluk Sultans. He was also impressed by the gates of the mosques on show at the Museum of Islamic Art. All thanks go to the artist for establishing the Luxor Faculty of Fine Arts where he designed a pure Egyptian curriculum based on studying the art of Ancient Egypt inspired by Luxor's Ancient Egyptian architecture and monuments excluding any European influences. The exhibition is running through 9 February.
