Invitation to the Defense of Mehri Khalil

The Examination Panel is made up of: Noit Banai (chair), Ruth Sonderegger (member of the curricula commission), Christian Kravagna (supervisor), and Anneka Lenssen (external appraiser, UC Berkeley).

Abstract

This dissertation takes the form of intellectual biographies of Samir Rafi (1926-2004) and Hamed Abdalla (1917-1985) during the broad historical period of modernism, from the 1950s to the 1980s, to demonstrate how the artists’ experiences shaped their work. The artists’ stories have never been fully recounted, and this paper explores the interplay between their lives and works to enrich our understanding of the history of modernism in Egypt. This qualitative research is supported by primary sources, often included in the body of the text in order to allow future researchers to utilize them; the artists’ personal diaries and notes, their immediate families’ accounts of events and views of their work, and art historical references, as well as interviews. As archives played a key role in this investigation, the research conditions for each artist contrasted greatly: Abdalla’s archives are preserved by his estate while Rafi’s records have been scattered after his death, making it much harder to understand the ar

Short biography

Mehri Khalil is an Egyptian artist and researcher based in Cairo. Mehri has previously worked in exhibition design at the Grand Egyptian Museum, working closely with the collection, and in art education with AFCA for Arts and Culture designing comprehensive teacher training programs. She has also edited two books authored by Mostafa El Razzaz Modern Egyptian Art: Making the Old, New (2019) and Inji, Tahia, Gazbia: A Life’s Journey (2014) and has contributed chapters to exhibition catalogs and books. As an artist, she has had solo exhibitions in Cairo and has participated in group exhibitions. For more information, please see: www.mehrikhalil.com. Mehri joined Al Mawrid Arab Center for the Study of Art, part of New York University Abu Dhabi, at its founding in 2021, and her work focuses on recording and digitizing archives originating from Egypt, ensuring their preservation for future scholars. Mehri’s doctoral studies at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna focus on transcultural influences on modern Egyptian art, and more particularly, Egyptian artists in Paris. She holds a master’s degree in Arts Administration and Policy from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (’12) and a bachelor’s degree from the American University in Cairo (’09).

The thesis defense will be held in English and online via Zoom.

Zoom-Link: Zoom-Link: https://akbild-ac-at.zoom.us/j/66772152295

Meeting-ID: 667 7215 2295

We are looking forward to welcoming you.