Tag: egypt

Youssef Nabil

Photography by Youssef Nabil

Born in Cairo, Egypt, Nabil started his photography career in 1992, shortly before meeting the American photographer David LaChapelle in Cairo, with whom he worked in New York in 1993. In 1997, Nabil worked in Paris with the Peruvian fashion photographer Mario Testino till late 1998. In 1999, Youssef Nabil had his first solo exhibition in Cairo. Through the years he remained a close friend with the Egyptian-Armenian studio portrait photographer Van Leo (Leon Boyadjian, 1921–2001), who encouraged Nabil to leave to the West. In 2003, Youssef Nabil was awarded the Seydou Keita Prize in the Biennial of African Photography in Bamako.

In 2001, while visiting Cairo, British artist Tracey Emin discovered Nabil’s work and later nominated him as a future top artist in Harper’s article Tomorrow People. Nabil left Egypt in 2003 for an artist residency at La Cité internationale des Arts in Paris. In 2006, he moved to live and work in New York City.

Many have been subject to Nabil’s lens and distinctive technique of hand-colouring gelatin silver prints, including artists Tracey Emin, Gilbert and George, Nan Goldin, Marina Abramović, Louise Bourgeois, and Shirin Neshat; singers Alicia Keys, Sting, and Natacha Atlas; actors Omar Sharif, Faten Hamama, Rossy de Palma, Charlotte Rampling, Isabelle Huppert, and Catherine Deneuve.

Hieroglyphic Writing

Hieroglyphic Writing at the Temple Complex in Luxor, Egypt

Luxor Temple is a large Ancient Egyptian temple complex located on the east bank of the Nile River in the city today known as Luxor (ancient Thebes) and was founded in 1400 BCE. Known in the Egyptian language as ipet resyt, or “the southern sanctuary”. In Luxor there are six great temples, the four on the left bank are known to travellers and readers of travels as Goornah, Deir-el-Bahri, the Ramesseum, and Medinet Habu; and the two temples on the right bank are known as the Karnak and Luxor.

Horus and Set

GlaringDragon, “Horus and Set”, DeviantArt

The most important part of the Chester Beatty Papyrus I is the mythological story of “The Contendings of Horus and Seth” which deals with the battles between Horus and Set to see who will be the successor to the throne of Osiris. Horus and Seth have various competitions to see who will be king. Horus beats Seth each time.

The specific time of the Contendings is a period during which the fighting has temporarily stopped; Seth and Horus have brought their case before the Ennead. There both Set and Horus plead their cases and the deities of the Ennead state their opinions. The combat starts up again between Horus and Seth and finally, the situation is resolved when Horus is determined to be rightful king of Egypt.

Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum

Tomb Painting of Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum

Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum were ancient Egyptian royal servants. They shared the title of Overseer of the Manicurists in the Palace of King Niuserre during the Fifth Dynasty of Egyptian pharaohs, c. 2400 BCE, and are listed as “royal confidants” in their joint tomb.

The tomb of Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum was discovered by Egyptologist Ahmed Moussa in the necropolis at Saqqara, Egypt in 1964, during the excavation of the causeway for the pyramid of King Unas. It is the only tomb in the necropolis where men are displayed embracing and holding hands. In addition, the men’s chosen names (both theophorics to the creator-god Khnum) form a linguistic reference to their closeness:

Niankhkhnum means “joined to life” and Khnumhotep means “joined to the blessed state of the dead’”, and together the names can be translated as “joined in life and joined in death”

In a banquet scene, Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep are entertained by dancers, clappers, musicians and singers; in another, they oversee their funeral preparations. In the most striking portrayal, the two embrace, noses touching, in the most intimate pose allowed by canonical Egyptian art, surrounded by what would appear to be their heirs.

Critics argue that both men appear with their respective wives and children, suggesting the men were brothers, rather than lovers.

Ceiling at Dendera

 

Astronomical Ceiling, Dendera

The ceiling of the Hypostyle Hall at Dendera Temple is enriched with an incredible amount of figurative detail carved in low relief and painted in subtle shades against a blue background. The subjects include numerous deities and hybrid figures (some familiar, others much less so) and even astrological elements, such as recognisable figures from the zodiac.

Fantastic photos of the “astronomical ceiling” at Dendera, posted on LiveJournal by aksanova.