“At Crossroads”, a unique collective exhibition of paintings by Ali Dessouki, Abdel-Aziz Al-Guindi, Abdel Rahim Shahin, Nermine Hakim, Mahmoud Hamed and Effat Hosni, currently on show at Picasso gallery in Zamalek, Cairo, beauty is preeminent. The six artists occupy a very important position in the contemporary Egyptian art movement. They have crucial art experiences and each one of them represents a different school of arts and use his very own style and technique. It showcases around 30 inspiring paintings, and they are all about crossroads of sorts, but the only factor that binds them is their respect for their art. Shahin exhibits five oil on wood paintings based on the idea of blending the ancient with the contemporary and inspiring from the heritage but through a modern vision. Dessouki showcases a number of his oil paintings that brilliantly echo the authentic Egyptian environment such as “The Daughter of the Fisherman”. The Egyptian alleyway is the main focus of attention in most of Dessouki's paintings. Born in the historical district of Al-Azhar located in the heart of Fatimid Cairo in 1937, he was vehemently influenced by the folk heritage of the area, its historical mosques as well as the Islamic Fatimid and Mameluk architecture with its glorious style. The painting in the picture is by Ali Dessouki.
