IT'S the intimate details that captivate you, making you wonder where she comes from. Is she from an Egyptian village or the United States? How has she managed to make her works so diverse? Known for years as Egypt's First Lady, Mrs Jehan el-Sadat, the widow of late Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat, now reveals her artistic talents in her first art exhibition, 'Landscapes of the Heart', which opened earlier this week at the AUC Downtown Cultural Centre. In 51 acrylic paintings, Jehan depicts landscapes inspired by the nature beauty of the village in the Nile Delta in which her late husband was born …quot; Mit Abul Kom. Other paintings are inspired by the US, where Jehan lived for years. "I have been painting for years and landscapes are what I love the most; I love looking at them and painting them. That's why I've called my first exhibition 'Landscapes of the Heart'. It reflects my passion for landscapes and how I see them," Jehan says with a smile. Being her first exhibition, 'Landscapes of the Heart' presents Jehan's work over the past half a century. The natural themes are very Egyptian and very American too. The Egyptian-style paintings depict traditional villages, river scenes, feluccas, camel caravans and mosques. They include 'Yellow Mosque', which depicts people walking towards a big yellow mosque, and 'The Village', which depicts farm animals near some rural buildings. These paintings reflect the deep passion Jehan has for traditional Egyptian villages, especially when she's abroad. "Egyptian villages are very close to my heart and I felt deep nostalgia for them when I was in the US, which is why I keep on drawing them." Meanwhile, the paintings of US scenes include lakes, mountains and forests; there's bright green everywhere. Colour played a crucial role in Jehan's works, giving an insight into how she feels and who she really is. "I'm an optimistic, seeing the good in things," says Jehan. "That is the secret behind my choice of colours and angles. I don't live in the past but in both the past and the present, looking to the future." Jehan's personal life and her marriage to President el-Sadat have genuinely affected her and given her a wider platform for creativity. She has devoted her free time to music, painting, reading and writing. "I started painting 55 years ago. I had a lot of spare time in the early part of my marriage, because Anwar el-Sadat was burdened with his political responsibilities," Jehan says. "He always appreciated my paintings and encouraged me to keep on going." The exhibition ‘Landscapes of the Heart' is being held in the Margo Veillon Gallery of Modern Egyptian Art at the AUC Downtown Cultural Centre, 113 Qasr Al-Aini Street, Cairo.
