Samir Rafi
Egyptian painter (1926–2004)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Samir Rafi (1926–2004) was an Egyptian modernist painter[1] who combined modern style with lines inspired from Ancient Egypt. His pieces primarily represented modern Egypt and the surrounding region.[2] He was inspired by cubism and surrealism, creating artworks both figurative and abstract.
Biography
Samir Rafi participated to his first exhibition age 17, while he was a student of watercolour painter Shafiq Rizq.[3] In 1944 and 1945 he takes part to the exhibitions organised by the group Art et Liberté.[3] Samir Rafi studied at the College of Fine Arts in Cairo, where he obtained a diploma with specialisation in decorative arts in 1948. That year he joins the Contemporary Art Group movement. He then pursued a doctorate at the Sorbonne University in Paris, where he was one of André Lhote's students.[2][4]
Rafi taught at the College of Fine Arts in Cairo and mounted exhibitions in Egypt.[2][4] He later taught arts and history in Algiers.[2]
One of his paintings reached the price of 87,500 GBP at a Christie's sale in 2019.[5]
Artworks
- Untitled, 1960, oil on canvas, 162.5 x 138 cm, sold 87,500 GPB in 2019 at Christie's [5]
- Nus, 1945, oil on canvas, 173 x 163 cm, collection Cheikh Hassan M. A. Al Thani[6][7]
- La Sorcière, 1946, oil on canvas, 77 x 46 cm, collection Nadim Elias[8]
- Momie ressuscitée, oil on burlap laid down on panel, 1959, 215 x 68 cm, sold for 35,000 GPB in 2018 at Christie's [9]