Hassan is clutching Naeema tightly, while she holds their son. The small family are sitting on the balcony enjoying the moonlight, while a white goose, a symbol of their prosperity, waddles nearby and the white roses in the picture stress their love. The love they show each other reminds us of a folk love story of ‘Hassan we Naeema', popular in Egyptian folkloric art. ‘Hassan we Naeema' is the master painting in Omar Abdel-Zaher's exhibition of the same name, being held in Lot17 Art Gallery. “My exhibition is all about man and woman. My works are based on stories from our folkloric heritage,” Abdel-Zaher told The Egyptian Gazette in an interview. Omar Abdel-Zaher was born in Cairo in 1966 and graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts, Graphic Design Department, Menia University. The exhibition, which contains about 12 paintings, took about a year to prepare. “Sometimes you keep painting and painting and adding more and more touches to your picture, till you spoil it. It's not about how long it takes but rather knowing when to stop painting,” he explained. Red is the dominant colour in Abdel-Zaher's paintings. It is the background colour in almost all of them. “The idea just comes. I don't sketch the idea before painting. I always leave the brush and colours to say whatever they want on the canvas. I prefer to be free and let my ideas flow freely,” he stressed. In 2006, the artist finished his PhD in Art Philosophy. Abdel Zaher is also one of 1,000 people worldwide to have been chosen by the International Biographical Institution in London to be included in the Global Dictionary of Curriculum Vitae of the 21st Century. Meanwhile, he is one of 500 people to be included in The Living Mythology of 2004, a book published by the International Biographical Institute. In his paintings, Abdel-Zaher uses many symbols from folkloric art. In ‘Ragaa', another of his paintings, he shows a man next to his wife with a fish on the table. “The fish is a symbol of abundance and charity,” the artist mentioned. Then there are two more paintings, ‘Girls' and ‘The Cat', which features a girl holding a white cat. “The cat is also a symbol in my paintings; it may mean ‘sex' or ‘evil',” he added. ‘Girls' depicts two girls lying on a bed, while a black cat stands beside a dish with a fish in. “The cat and the fish in this painting reflect the conflict between good and evil,” Abdel Zaher explained. Another painting, entitled ‘Picasso', shows Picasso painting the portrait of a young woman. “I just want visitors to interpret my paintings for themselves. I enjoy listening to their interpretations. This painting started when I found a picture of Picasso in a magazine then imitated it, adding more folkloric symbols.” Abdel-Zaher has held numerous solo and group exhibitions, both locally and internationally. He has also been awarded prominent prizes, including the State Award for Art Creativity 2001. His works are to be found amongst private collections in countries including France, the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia. The exhibition ‘Hassan we Naeema', being held in Lot17 Art Gallery, 17 Mohamed Mazhar St., Zamalek (02/2735-2449), is open daily except on Sundays and runs until February 2.
