Gamal al-Sighini (1917-1977)
was born and raised in the
Cairo district of Bab al-Shiriya,
a neighborhood next to the
Khan el-Khalili. He entered
art school in 1933 and
graduated in 1938. This work
measures 33 cm and conveys a
powerful message by assuming
the static concentrated
power of the cat and the
hawk of pharaonic
iconography, borrowing
expressive attitude rather
than the symbols themselves.
Sighini held a position as
the privileged sculptor of
the official line. After
1969, Sighini's dramatized
emotionalism turned into a
morbidity aggravated by the
frustration of seeing his
sculpture models piling up
in his studio and not being
commissioned for display in
public places. So in 1969,
he dumped some of his works
in the Nile.