In Pictures: Female Freedom

Horra by up-and-coming artist Karim Abd Elmalak is now showing at Safarkhan Art Gallery. Abd Elmalak mixes portraits of beautiful women with interesting architecture in his oil paintings, his paintings revolving around the themes of female empowerment and identity, and portraying a woman’s many roles in society.



The captivating portraits with their distinctive backgrounds feature a dramatic bird motif, clearly indicating the desire to of the female protagonists be uncaged and fly free.



“Abd Elmalak’s current exposé is centered around the ever-significant theme of female empowerment, identity and prowess, and through his canvasing of these exclusively female profiles we are made to feel and appreciate the intense bond between females and their environment, the woman’s unchangeable, indispensable and constant role as nurturer, provider, lover as both mother or wife, and citizen of society,” Safarkhan curators write on their facebook page.



“Abd Elmalak’s most recent collection is a celebration and homage to the complex and often troublesome and taboo relationship between women’s identity, rights, suffrage and her constantly contested role in society in the modern age, as conservative and liberal ideologies regarding women’s role and worth are increasingly at odds with one another.



Abdel ElMalak’s collection here is simultaneously both a poignant critique of the treatment of women in what he calls ‘Eastern society,’ and a glorifying tribute to the women of Egypt and by extension the world, a token of his compassionate and sincere gratitude as to their cherishing love and protection, and the somber forewarning that we must put an end to this cultural and societal war against the woman, who are undoubtedly as he states, the key to life, in our societies,” the page adds.

Elmalak graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts, Minia University, and his works have been displayed in several galleries across Egypt as well as Paris and Washington.

Horra continues until May 19 at Safarkhan Art Gallery • 6 Brazil St., Zamalek • Tel: +20111 0070707 • Monday to Saturday 10am to 9pm • safarkhan.com • facebook.com/groups/safarkhan/