Cultural Heritage & Art in Modern Egypt

By Karim Badr

Egyptian society is rich in diverse aesthetic values, expressed through visual arts like painting and sculpture, which have been integral since early human history. Modern Egyptian Art reflects this cultural diversity, blending authenticity and modernity. This research delves into how Egyptian Modern Art depicts the nation's heritage. The study begins with an overview of the history of Egyptian Modern Art, starting from the Orientalism Era and the establishment of the School of Fine Arts in 1908. It examines how heritage was incorporated into the works of early 20th-century pioneers and traces this interaction through to contemporary art. The research highlights how art has been mobilized for nationalism, particularly during the revolutions of 1919 and 1952, fostering a sense of identity and cultural belonging. Further, the study explores how art celebrates indigenous people and landscapes, portraying daily life in the countryside and among the poor, thus valuing Egyptian culture. It also examines the impact of political movements on art, focusing on groups like Art & Freedom, which introduced surrealism and liberated artistic expression from academic constraints in the 1940s. This era saw a transformation in Egypt's cultural and artistic scene, fostering a widely appreciated artistic culture. The research also covers the revolutionary graffiti during the 2011 revolution, which brought art from galleries to the streets, reflecting societal changes and spreading cultural awareness. Additionally, it looks at how art celebrates Islamic and Coptic heritage, as well as calligraphy, highlighting the works of artists in these fields. Surrealism's influence on depicting folkloric heritage, creating art from Egyptian tales and superstitions, is also discussed. The research tests a hypothesis on how Egyptian Modern Art of Painting and Sculpture, from pioneer generations to the present, expresses and depicts cultural heritage. Data was collected through interviews and questionnaires, using a mixed-methods approach to analyze artistic motifs and the status of art management in Egypt. The study addresses why art appreciation is confined to a certain intellectual community despite the widespread depiction of Egyptian heritage. Lastly, the research discusses the problems of Art management in Egypt, interviewing stakeholders to gauge their efforts in promoting cultural heritage awareness. A SWOT analysis is conducted to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in the Egyptian artistic scene, aiming to enhance its potential and address existing challenges.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Karim Badr
• Release date: Jun 21, 2024
• ISBN: 9798223897668

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ABSTRACT

Egyptian society is rich of different aesthetic values based on different ways of expression in visual arts. One of these ways that has been used since the early human life is the art of painting and sculpture. Egyptian Modern Art depicted the Egyptian cultural diversified heritage. Art also expressed the reality, connecting authenticity with modernity in a cultural context. This context valorized the authenticity of Egyptian cultural identity, and its capability of artistic expression. The topic of Egyptian Modern Art depicting Egyptian cultural heritage is discussed in the research. The research begins with a literature presentation for the beginning of Egyptian Modern Art history since the Orientalism Era. Then it goes to the time of establishing a School of Fine Arts in 1908. Then explaining how heritage was mobilized in Egyptian Artworks of Pioneers Generations. The literature presentation traces the interaction of art with heritage in the artworks of Egyptian artists since the beginning of 20th century till now. Based on the concept of interaction between art and society, the research shows how heritage is mobilized the cause of Nationalism. The nationalism discourse in art during the revolutions happened in Egypt in 1919 and 1952. How art depicted celebrated the national movements in Egypt and participated in creating a sense of identity and cultural belonging. Then the research moves to the subject of Art celebrating indigenous people and landscapes. This subject explains how art depicted the daily life of Egyptian society in the countryside as well as the poor people. This way valorized the Egyptian culture by art and depicted the original Egyptian features, crafts and daily practices. Another subject discusses Art and political movements, showing the effect of the political movements in the society and its response on the Egyptian artistic scene. The political movements influence on Egyptian art is discussed through the artistic groups in Egyptian art history. The group of Art & Freedom started the Egyptian surrealist art expressing a liberated political discourse. This group opened the door for more liberated art from the dogmas of academic art at that time. In the middle of 1940s, another art groups were founded adopting surrealism. They changed the Egyptian cultural and artistic scene totally. They influenced the society and spread a well appreciated artistic culture. In the interaction of Art and society through political movements, the revolutionary graffiti was very well appreciated by people during the revolution of January 2011. Graffiti reflected the change happened in society by spreading art in the streets out of the exhibition halls. This art communicated to people through Egyptian cultural heritage. The revolutionary spirit emitted in Egypt can improve the Egyptian artistic scene and spread cultural awareness. Moreover, a presentation for how Art celebrates Islamic and Coptic heritage and calligraphy. Discussing artists worked on that topic and detect the valorized Egyptian cultural heritage in their artworks. Then the art depicted Egyptian popular folkloric heritage through surrealism movement. That movement made an artistic creation out of the Egyptian folkloric tales and superstitions. The research then is based on a hypothesis questioning the Egyptian Modern Art of Painting and Sculpture since the generation of pioneers until now. The hypothesis is testing how could Egyptian modern art express and depict the Egyptian cultural heritage in different subjects. The interviews collected data about the artistic motifs expressed by artists depicting heritage. Questionnaires and interviews based on a mixed research approach are held. The questions are both qualitative and quantitative.  Then another hypothesis is raised to question the problems of Art management in Egypt. The data collected by one-to-one interviews as well as questionnaires to analyze the status of Art management in Egypt. The research problem is to discuss the reasons of why Art appreciation became enclosed in a certain community of intellectuals while Egyptian art presented and depicted Egyptian cultural heritage. Also, the graffiti movement proved that heritage and art are alive in the social consciousness. For this reason, the research discusses problem of Art management in Egypt with different stakeholders involved in managing the Egyptian artistic scene. It went to recognize their attention to spread cultural heritage awareness. Then SWOT analysis is made to highlight the potentials of Egyptian Artistic scene and to define the threats affecting it.

Note: This dissertation was written in 2013, and the defense was in 2014. Though, I had to update it with some photos for the artists paintings and to update the death dates of some artists mentioned in the text in order to be published. And in the appendix, I took away the responses of some questionnaires as they have been analyzed in the Chapters No.3 &4.

INTRODUCTION

Earth’s great river valleys nourished and united people as water and water ways established the agriculture and a settled way of life. The river Nile in Egypt was one of the most important waterways since more than 5000 years ago when men and women in ancient Egypt laid the foundations for civilization as people banded together in the community projects. The families of people who came together have formed the society and eventually created cities which lived over many generations witnessing the evolution of the people’s thinking in digging, agriculture, irrigation, building, etc. In the ancient times rulers, priests, labors and artists lived and worked together in real cities in the service of the community and the holly gods. In ancient Egypt, people farmed in the valleys of the river and agriculture became the basis of wealth, community leaders applied their power until kingship became the only form of government.

Such society could no more depend on oral communication, thus daily life issues should be recorded, and this lead to the development of writing. Simple pictures and after that, standardized complex system of writing and documenting for different life issues. Those records of history and literature are the visual arts, helps us to interpret and dedicate the cultural heritage inherited by the Egyptians since the ancient years and till the current time.

[1]

Through Egypt’s history from the early centuries and the ancient Egyptian civilization art of painting was the main tool for the ancient Egyptian to document and record his daily life incidents, other than his religion and his beliefs that has been drawn on the temples which are standing till now showing a great civilization that lived someday over the Nile river banks and still living inside us through our different features of heritage, traditions, beliefs, practice and even our social and political life. In addition to a cultural expansion that occurred through the different phases of life and civilization in Egypt during the Christian era, the Islamic and even in the modern ages. All of these cultures were having a great impact on the Egyptian community yielding a social production of arts, there are shown everywhere in different types, here in this research we will be discussing the modern art of painting and sculpture and how they could revive and conserve the cultural heritage values in the Egyptian community as a way of instilling the mindset of the national and cultural identity which is an authentic and rich one in front of the foreign movements of forming the whole world in a pattern of one shaped cultural features. During the modern era and in what we call Egyptian renaissance, in the beginning of 20th century. A generation of youth artists went to study painting and sculpture in Europe after they were graduated from the first Fine Arts school in modern Egypt. Since that time a big movement of art started with the new values of Egyptian renaissance by a lot of Big names in Art of painting and sculpture. Those names are considered now great artists. They were the first in modern history who established the theories of art in Egypt as well as the first generation of creators. Meanwhile, still till our time art is appreciated by the elite of the society. Also, art is still appreciated within the class of intellectuals, artists and people who are interested in art. Actually, Egyptian modern art had a massively important cultural role in preserving and depicting the Egyptian cultural heritage, and this role should be valorized.

Art in Egypt is consisted of many things which started not only from one hundred years ago but it had its value other than its heritage long time ago. If art nowadays is isolated from the society, another discourse should be presented to comply with the society’s cultural heritage and needs of people. Art should be presented in a new way which is closer to the cultural needs of people. Such presentation should not affect the artistic freedom of expression or the Art for Art principle. The new discourse should make people closer to art appreciation and to revive the sense of art inside them.

The recent two years in Egypt have witnessed the major event happened which is the Egyptian revolution. We could see the incidents of the revolution were documented at first by Art. The art of graffiti was expressed on the walls of the buildings in down town squares and streets. It presented every incident on its time. It also preserved the spirit of the place which the painting is telling its story. Moreover, graffiti art created a tale for each place and kept it alive in the memory. It was the art recorded everything happened to create a new history for people. That history inspired their experiment and their own emotions. From this comes heritage.

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Figure 1- Mahmoud Saeid- Banat Bahary

The reason of this research

This research is to discuss the argument of art, heritage and society in Egypt. Discussing the connection between Egyptian Modern Art and the heritage of Egypt and how the Egyptian artistic scene depicted Egyptian cultural heritage. Also, how art is inspired from the Egyptian cultural heritage values and how it preserved these values.

The research will go to a hypothesis that discusses how that Egyptian Modern art became a part of the heritage should be preserved and valorized. Through the process of the research we should know how some artists experiences worked on that subject. How they presented a discourse that is connected to the Egyptian heritage. Also, how art was appreciated in Egypt based on its cultural discourse. Meanwhile, art is still appreciated in a closed circuit and it is not really appreciated by masses of people. This will lead us to another hypothesis regarding the art management in Egypt. It goes through the role of museums and art galleries in developing art appreciation of the society. The hypothesis goes to the process of making art a way of improving culture, identity and nationalism.  In addition to the importance of art as cultural value, it can have a role in developing society. Such role is to improve the cultural heritage awareness and the aesthetic culture among the society.

Problematic

The research problem is to discuss the role of Egyptian Modern Art in valorizing and conserving Egyptian cultural heritage and how it can work towards a better future for Egypt.

Objective of the research

The objective of this research is to present the importance of Egyptian Modern Art as a very important art. It came out from the cultural reality of Egypt and inspired the Egyptian cultural heritage in its different means. The Egyptian cultural diversification is well expressed in Art, based on a context of artistic values. Egyptian art has an authentic identity and instills the sense of identity and cultural belonging in the Egyptian social consciousness.

Another objective is to go deep in art management problems in Egypt. To know what are the problems facing Egyptian artistic scene. Those problems can stop the spread of artistic awareness and aesthetic culture.  Spread of this aesthetic culture in Egypt through spreading art works on presenting the valorized cultural heritage value.  Such, cultural and artistic awareness aims to make a cultural and societal development in the society. This cultural development makes people enjoy life better. It also creates the senses of art and beauty in the society for a better future. It also grows the values of humanity and tolerance in society. Also, it supports the national senses and loyalty, and it connects people to the value of preserving cultural heritage.

Theoretical Foundation of the research

It is an overview of the beginning of Egyptian Modern Art history since the Orientalism Era. Then it goes to the time of School of Fine Arts in 1908, and how heritage was mobilized in Egyptian Art. The research goes through generation of Pioneers and all over the history in Egypt’s different ages and traces the connection of art with heritage. After that, there is a discussion for art in the twentieth century through the works of Egyptian artists. The research presents their different works since the beginning of 20th century till now. The research aims to present the connection in their artworks between heritage and the reality in their work. It shows how they utilized cultural heritage values to create a pure Egyptian art, even if they were educated in Europe.

The discussion of literature review is based on subjects, like Art and Nationalism, Art celebrating indigenous people, Art and Political movements and the Art celebrating Islamic and Coptic heritage and calligraphy. Moreover, the research is going through the surrealist movement in Egyptian art that was built on the Egyptian popular folkloric heritage based on discussing common strands in the literature of articles and references discussing the Egyptian Art.

Hypothesis and Methodology of the research

The research is based on the following hypothesis:

How did the Egyptian Modern Art of Painting and Sculpture since the generation of pioneers and till now, depicted Egyptian cultural heritage in different subjects?

To test the raised hypothesis several questionnaires and interviews based on a mixed research approach are held. Both qualitative and quantitative methods are used in research.  

Then another hypothesis raised the question about the problems of Art management in Egypt.  Such problems make Art is enclosed within its community neglected from masses of people. The hypothesis is:

What are the problems of art management in Egypt?

For testing hypothesis, interviews were held with the defined stakeholders. They are the stakeholders involved in the problem of art management in Egypt. Then the collected data went through a process of analysis to state whether the verified hypothesis are valid or not.

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Figure 2 Mahmoud Moukhtar Executing Statue of Egypt Awakening

"When I was a child, there had been no sculpture and no sculptor in my country for over

Seventeen hundred years. The images that appeared among the ruins and sands at the edge of the desert were considered to be accursed and evil idols that no one should approach"

Mahmoud Moukhtar

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Figure 3 Hassan Abdel Fattah- Characters

any piece of art the artist produces is a contemporary work born of the current moment. It is just the artist’s background that might reflect some interest in history or the past. I don’t think there is any conflict between authenticity and modernity, nor does the co-existence of the two concepts necessarily make a good art.

Hassan Abdel Fattah

CHAPTER 1

EGYPTIAN CULTURAL HERITAGE IN MODERN ART

1.1 Heritage and Art

With the beginning of the twentieth century, Egyptians were refusing European cultural domination during years of the colonization. The modern expression by art reflected the growing national consciousness. After the revolution of 1952 the community of art patrons disappeared and the Government took the role of working on art and culture through a new established ministry of culture. In the 1990s Egyptian art was affected by a lot of cultural shifts due to the world cultural changes of globalization and other related political and cultural shifts. Such effects caused a massive challenge for the sense of loyalty and belonging, a disruption was the response of the new cultural shifts that people could not easily cope with. A separation happened as a result of such challenges; the separation was between the artist and the society. Another separation happened for the art itself from the social context of the daily life.

By studying the heritage discourse in modern art we are discussing the interaction of art and society, and how could the Egyptian art be a value of heritage. Conserving the artistic heritage is a major ensure for an identity and belonging for the native culture in a challenging global world full of cultural invasions that could be absorbing the people away from their original cultures. [2]

The Egyptian character that was shown in many works of the Egyptian art had had the big role in the aesthetic discourse of awakening for Egyptian culture as well as the support of national spirit. Like the different characters represented in the works of many artists, such as: Abdel Hady El Gazzar, Hamed Nada, Saad el Khadem and the sculptures of Moukhtar representing the rising of Egypt against British colonization in addition to his sculptures of the Egyptian farmers. These characters are already extracted from the heritage of the Egyptians, their cults and their beliefs.

In spite of a lot of achievements happened in the recent six years by artists, state, galleries and a lot of entities working directly through art. The aesthetic culture of modern painting and sculpture could not be spread and appreciated largely by the whole society. The majority of people are still satisfied by their culture and arts as major assets preventing them from going through the modern arts connected by the westernized modernism. The main problem here is that artist cannot work and create art without audiences who can appreciate and understand this art, while the majority of people are getting used to live without this art. This is actually the main reason that artists and art management community should be involved in finding a solution for the problem.[3]

From this point Egyptian modern art since the awakening of Egypt in beginning of nineteenth century could be able to revive the Egyptian heritage. It also aimed to instill the Egyptian culture as well as discussing the political and social cases. Finally, the pictorial art and sculpture enriched the national spirit.

Egyptian modern art worked on valorizing and conserving the Egyptian heritage, since the beginning of 1919 revolution and the rise of Egyptian national conscious among all the classes of the Egyptian society. Such era was a real renaissance and awakening for Egypt by all means. The concept of Independent Egypt took over in all the aspects of life at that time. Especially the cultural aspects, people demands were: Constitution of a free country, Justice and Independence. These demands were flourished in the mindset of society by a generation of intellectuals who studied in Europe and in the same time enriched their self-motivation towards a passion for their country to be free. They were the fabulous icons of society in the fields of culture, art, law, literature. They could educate themselves abroad and return back to Egypt to be the first spark in the fire of progress.

That time made a lot of change in the cultural scene including the artistic scene. The idea of creation became oriented towards people while the indigenous effect in literature, pictorial art, sculpture and music was very obvious. We could find Taha Hussein (1889-1973) writing about the people in the village, Sayed Darwish (1882-1923) singing about the workers and the peasants creating new features for music totally extracted from the indigenous people in different diversities. The fine arts had a massive contribution in the national awakening through the first generation of artists who attended the fine arts school established in Cairo 1908. They have been graduated carrying in their minds and souls a lot of knowledge. Their great hope and passion to get involved in the great glorious cultural scene enriched the national and social consciousness of the society, which the colonization thought it has already dead. First generation of Egyptian modern artists was called the generation of pioneers, this generation started by discussing and spreading the most important cases occupied the minds of intellectuals and artists at that time. The concept of heritage and its importance, its value in the current life, these were the cases discussed. The Generation of Pioneers inserted the first step in the Egyptian modern art when they took an academic study in European institutes, but they were keen to be educated from the greatest professor which is their inherited cultural heritage. They believed in their very rich civilization that was enlightening the world in the ancient ages. They went deeply through the ancient Egyptian art and they studied its rules and theorems to present and express with a real authentic art that spread the real concept of nationalism in art.[4]

Nowadays, in the world of globalization we are living, we find ourselves in urgent need to understand the Egyptian modern art. In the race of modern science and technology, it is very important to have a deep awareness of cultural heritage. Meanwhile, revival of authenticity is not a call for isolation and being away from the progressing modernity. It is an open enlightened call for cultural dialectic with all the other cultures all over the world by an authentic cultural discourse. Such discourse is based on deep conscious that is fully aware by changes of history and changes of generations. That cultural discourse is built upon a cultural specialty. The cultural specialty is having its authentic roots; instilling and ensuring the identity of a special art against the other incoming cultural shifts.

1.2 Brief History for the Art scene in Modern Egypt

As like a lot of historians who claim that Egyptian renaissance has started with the French campaign in 1798. The French colonization in Egypt which was ended three years after has brought a lot of scientists and artists. They went around all the regions of Egypt and everywhere recording and documenting the Egyptian daily life, customs, traditions, scenes for the antiquities and architecture. They painted the celebrations of (Al Mouled) as well as the other celebrations of