CAIRO - In a career lasting more than 18 years, he has tried to create artworks that will stand the test of time. His belief in what he is doing is what keeps him going. In his latest exhibition, ‘Mosaic Melodies', Egyptian artist Saad el-Romani, the pioneer of the art of micro-mosaics in modern Egypt, introduces an art that needs much patience and talent. “The exhibition contains 38 different works – landscapes and portraits of famous people, past and present,” el-Romani told The Egyptian Gazette in a phone interview. Micro-mosaics are images created from small pieces of coloured glass. They are a form of decorative art, used for interior decoration. They have a cultural significance or a spiritual one – in a cathedral for example. “Unlike with paintings, the colour of a mosaic never changes; they last a very long time,” said el-Romani, whose works are a milestone in modern art. “I will always work with mosaics. They are my life. And I want everyone to see them. Making mosaics is an immortal art,” added the artist, who studied at the Faculty of Fine Arts. His chosen degree project was the revival of classical art by means of mosaics. This passion has clearly not left him. El-Romani is now working on an abstract piece of work about the Egyptian revolution with his own unique signature. “But, as you know, mosaics take a long time to complete,” he explained. “Depending on the idea, a mosaic might taken less than three months or more than 18 months to finish.” Saad el-Romani's exhibition, ‘Mosaic Melodies', is being held under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, in order to boost art in Egypt, at the Mahmoud Saeed Centre of Museums and Exhibitions, 6 Mahmoud Basha Saeed Street, Janakless, Alexandria (03/585-1245). The exhibition is open daily from 10am to 2pm and from 4.30pm to 8.30pm, until June 5.
