Alexandrian artist to exhibit Italian Renaissance inspired paintings

CAIRO - 1 April 2018: Alexandrian artist Aya Tarek is hosting a new exhibition, called "Aya Tarek's Sprezzatura", at Soma Gallery in Zamalek on Sunday.

Tarek's newest exhibition centers on the concept of “Sprezzatura”, a term dating back to a piece of Italian Renaissance literature by Balassare Castiglione aimed at instructing noblemen on how to dress and act. It is a concept that essentially means extreme perfectionism, as exemplified by English fashion icon Beau Brummell, who would stand in front of a mirror for hours in order to ensure his cravat had looked effortlessly placed.

According to her official website, Tarek is a painter, street artist and illustrator with an "exciting portfolio of diverse art projects, feature films and art collaborations in countries ranging from Sao Paolo to Frankfurt." Born in Alexandria in 1989, she has already managed to reach the level of international attention. Her works explore the dynamics of urban spaces and how people interact with them, particularly in the "different interchanges within modes of urban communication."

She has been creating street art since 2008 and has exhibited at places such as the Arabic Graffiti & Egyptian Street Art in Frankfurt in 2012, the USF Contemporary Art Museum in Florida in 2015, Cairo's Gypsum Gallery in 2017, the Alexandria Contemporary Art Forum in 2010 and much more.

For Tarek, she applies the concept into the visual world for her latest exhibition, as she expresses a selection of monochromatic works that appear to be simple, easily painted and flawless, but were actually the result of long hours of hard work, done to ensure the final product would look as effortlessly produced as possible.