The Egyptian artist, Gazbia Sirry is not a new discovery for me: I have been following her work for many years, and have had the opportunity to visit her studio in Cairo. I have come to appreciate not only her power, as a self-determined woman, always ready to confront and overcome life’s difficulties, but also the power of her hand, throbbing with vitality, and inspired by the inner feelings and creativity of the artist: the power of her brush and the power of her colors.

Gazbia Sirry is one of the leading figures of Egyptian feminist art. However, her paintings-full of movement and color-reflect her extraordinary vitality, and her work- cannot be described as ’feminist’ in the sense commonly associated with the term. Because artistic expression is solely judged by its value, it is a mistake to confine art to labels.

Gazbia’s work is an instinctive process, violent and full of inner feelings, that not only looks for esthetic quality, but, on the contrary, is always to challenge rules.

Gazbia’s art is a contemporary art that is subject to neither form nor image but reflects old roots through the unconscious. It is an art that narrates without ever getting caught up in story telling or anecdotes; it tells of everyday problems, as well as problems as old as history.

I wish Gazbia a happy journey back to Egypt and hope to see her exhibiting again in Rome-without the need to go to Cairo and fetch her from her studio-with new achievements that further contribute to her outstanding career.    

Carmine Sinisicalo

Art critic

Studio S, Rome. February 1994