If ever an eminently viewable exhibition is badly served by its title, it is the uninformative and uninviting ‘General Exhibition' now in its last week at the Palace of Arts, Gezira. Fortunately, several of the sculptures placed just outside the entrance entice the passerby to enter the exhibition, including two eye-catching camel variations: a lean metallic camel by Saeed Kamel and the poignant, beautifully sculpted parts of a camel reduced to its large fleshy head and four feet by Nathan Doss. Inside, as if to complement the paucity of detail about the exhibition on its huge vertical banners outside, there is no information whatsoever about the exhibition and the labels bear only each artist's name, fairly small and in Arabic – no title, no date, no number. The pleasant and helpful staff working there, who directed us to a name we had missed, said that the catalogue was still at the printer and that the exhibition presented renowned contemporary Egyptian artists. We still did not know the rationale for the exhibition or criteria for the artists, but my Egyptian Gazette colleague Hugh Nicol and I decided to make a virtue out of necessity and enjoy what in effect was a magical mystery art tour, with no preconceived ideas about what we were going to see. From the paintings signed and dated on the canvas, it seemed that only fairly recent work was on show and, as we walked our way around the Palace of Arts, this in itself also became somewhat of a mystery tour, with its different and sometimes perplexing levels; it was not always apparent how to get from one to another and we were not sure if we had missed a gallery. However, we were happy to linger and retrace our footsteps, the predominantly airy and spacious building being pleasantly cool without the infamous Egyptian A/C freezer effect, many of its galleries benefiting from the overhead subdued natural light. We thought the impressive work, displaying intelligence and imagination, was well hung, exhibits sometimes complementing one another with others strikingly juxtaposed, such as in the first gallery. Two charming figurines of a girl in a bathing costume and a woman in a floral sundress, by Abdel-Moneim Mohamed el-Hiwan, an echo maybe of Egypt in the mid-20th century, were viewed from one angle against a large and bold abstract 2012 painting by Jihan Ali Suleiman. Nearby, some passionate musicians were portrayed, included a young female cellist, whose image we remembered when we later saw a double depiction of a calm and reflective male violinist. The exhibition is extremely diverse in theme and medium – paintings, prints, sculpture, photography, Arabic calligraphy (shown in one gallery) and just a couple of video installations. There are some compelling portraits, notably of African sitters, while the marvellous, mesmeric ‘Fayoum portraits' (from Greek and Roman Egypt) have inspired several painters, not in any derivative sense, but as an integral element in imaginative compositions. Another link between the ancient, classical and contemporary worlds is a group of elegant ceramic pots, very tactile, as are other earthenware and stoneware, abstract and figurative, including Egypt's famous textured granite, although we resisted – with difficulty – the temptation to touch! We spent a long time looking at an enigmatic 2011 painting by Mohssen Shaaban, of a rather dishevelled, seemingly disturbed man in a suit with a group of men in simple casual clothing, some of whom were wearing a bandage patch over one eye. It made us think of all the people who were so cruelly targeted and some blinded during the days of revolution and protest when snipers shot at their eyes. There were a few images, both overt and covert, of the January 25 revolution and tributes to the martyrs and political references. An American soldier meticulously rendered in full combat gear was depicted beside an outline map. But what country? Iraq? Afghanistan? Given the Empire's proliferation of military bases throughout the world it could be practically any country, unless you recognise the map. There are relatively few traditional landscapes and scenes but one large painting attracted Hugh: a wonderfully swirling representation by Sayed S. Eldin of Upper Egyptian ritual stick fighting, the two central robed combatants being mounted on horseback. There is a resonance between two pairs of paintings in different galleries with their compelling shades of glowing yellow – sand in one case, stone walls in the other – and the blue of their skies. The first, showing mangroves at the water's edge, looks like the Red Sea and the second, which is of tall and narrow vernacular buildings with wooden supports, had the feel of oasis architecture. Siwa? Dakhla? Or maybe another North African country? Although the topics are mainly Egyptian there are a few foreign as well as local scenes. The Palace of Arts is conveniently open in the evening, as well as the morning, for concert-goers and other people going to the various attractions in the gracious and spacious Opera House grounds, which can be glimpsed through its windows. The ‘General Exhibition' continues at the Palace of Arts, Opera House grounds, Gezira, until Monday 28 May, open daily 10-2 and 5-10.
