Thoughts: Nada Elkalaawy 'Object of Attention'
Gypsum Gallery, Cairo (12 February - 18 March 2025)
Sitting down this morning to post some thoughts on instagram about Nada Elkalaawy’s show ‘Object of Attention’ at Gypsum Gallery in Cairo, it dawned on me that I simply had too much to say about the work to cram it all into one measly instagram post. Since attending an artist talk earlier this week, I haven’t stopped thinking about these mesmerising works and the nostalgic feelings they evoked.
Born in Egypt, Nada Elkalaawy is now based in London, and this is her first solo exhibition at Gypsum Gallery.
In this series of paintings, mundane, yet kitsch domestic objects such as porcelain figurines and dinnerware sets are ‘monumentalised’ (to quote Nada) and appear dominant and oversized in the works, their silver, porcelain and glass surfaces polished and glimmering. Inspired by family photograph albums, trips to museums, and antique shops, Elkalaawy uses photography as her starting point for her work. Having amassed a vast collection of imagery, photographs rather than the object itself, are the departure point for a painting. Each painting depicts objects or figurines that result from an amalgamation of images, rather than a direct depiction of a specific item.
Sparking memories of objects one might find in a family home, placed on a mantelpiece or in a ‘pedestal’ like setting, these figurines and ceramic dinnerware sets are gaudy, repulsive and yet at the same time strangely endearing. Once revered and taking up pride of place in homes, these objects have become obsolete and insignificant in recent years, with many now found gathering dust in homes and antique or vintage shops around the globe. However, in these works, they are resurrected, restored to their former glory and placed at the forefront of both the paintings, and the mind of the viewer.
Putti, cherubic and sometimes winged infants, also appear throughout Elkalaawy’s work. Often linked to Cupid, and derived from the Latin word ‘putus’ meaning ‘little man’, they are often depicted as allegorical figures in mythological and religious paintings from the Baroque and Renaissance periods. In contemporary culture, they are often seen as the embodiment of love and depicted on Valentine’s Day cards.
These putti and objects are often set against tapestry like backgrounds, some muted, and others more vibrant in colour, with horizontal or vertical brushstrokes replicating the type of imaginary loom these works were weaved upon. Elkalaawy has worked with tapestry in the past, informing her depiction of this medium in her paintings.
Experiencing these works and hearing Nada speak, effectively transported me back to my grandmother’s home in 1980s and 1990s Ireland, where Lladro and Dresden figurines adorned the mantel and shelves. Always intriguing, to a child they looked almost toy-like and my natural instinct was to want to take them down from their perch to play with them, much to my grandmother’s dismay and verbal warnings about how they were not toys, were special, and not to be touched. There was a particularly ornate Dresden lamp, with two lavishly-dressed figures, one of whom sat playing a piano, that my grandmother left to me when she passed away. Along with a silver-plated tea set, on reflection, it is indicative of just how treasured these objects were that she deemed them worthy of inheritance. The show also gave me pause for reflection on just how universal these figurines and objects are, and why that is. Commonly found throughout homes in Egypt, as outlined by Elkalaawy, they also exist in homes throughout the UK, Ireland and around the world, with their popularity enduring to this day. Perhaps these ceramic sets and revered hollow, shiny, porcelain figures hold such prestige or allegorical significance that to commit them to history would be a travesty?
Nada Elkalaawy’s exhibition runs until 18 March at Gypsum Gallery in Maadi, Cairo. More information about Nada Elkalaawy, Gypsum and its programme can be found at their website or instagram.
www.gypsumgallery.com / @gypsumgallery