The Kite
Gazbia Sirry was a celebrated Egyptian artist whose work The Kite from 1960 reflects in allegorical terms the emergence of new political and cultural anxieties as the promises of a recently independent Egypt began to fade. A vital contributor to the Modern Art Group in Cairo, she stood out for her depictions of women from all walks of life participating in the dynamic public life of the young nation. In this work, a figure with outstretched arms struggles to hold on to a kite string that seems to pull her towards the darkening sky. The painting was exhibited at the 1963 São Paulo Biennale under the title "al-Khamasīn," or "The Sandstorm": its more menacing tone better reflecting the mood of the painting.
Artwork Details
- Title: The Kite
- Artist: Gazbia Sirry (Egyptian, Cairo 1925–2021 Cairo)
- Date: 1960
- Medium: Oil on canvas
- Dimensions: 37 3/4 × 20 1/4 in. (95.9 × 51.4 cm)
- Classification: Paintings
- Credit Line: Gift of Gazbia Sirry, 2009
- Object Number: 2009.166
- Rights and Reproduction: © Estate of Egyptian Artist Gazbia Sirry
- Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art
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