Confinement and escape The whisper of harsh clay , the smoothness and neatness of marble : aunion of two apposites with underlying tensions . these were my first impressions when samir shoukry invited me to see his clay vessels of the type found in upper Egypt. Rough and dark the colour of mud smooth in parts encased in rich marble which tightiy holds them while they struggle to break free from their confinement to the risk of shattering an ordinary object previously used for cooking or as a simple ornament has been transformed with great skill into a dramatic piece far removed from the humble uses for which it was traditionally destined The marble normally inlaid with brass mother of pearl or other types of marble now encloses the clay in a loving embrace forming together an enchanting rhythm as the artist continues his searcn for the creation of the ideal form
A new Experiment deserving contemplation Today the artist samir shoukry Presents a naw experiment in utensils field the eldest arts which has been know by human being as necessity to face the problem of storing liquids and grains . Along the years of history , the industry of utensil went through several stages until it reached to be part of environment grace elements in the modern contemparory stage , at the same time the designer invented in setting an expressive pretty form lines for the utensils used in preserving fluids perfumes . Today , samir shoukry provide this experiment which gathered between his long years of subsistence with ancient egyption & lslamic museums together with the popular national pottery utensils made from clay and his old beloved to egyption marble with its impressive wavy appearance colours and expressive surface touch. Accordingly , the idea fermented in this mind . why should’nt combine between the pottery earthenware utensils and the small pieces of marble ? he started clading completely the external surface of the pottery . In his second experiment , he left apart pottery with out being covered by marble pieces.. this idea admired him and started studying the adhesive materials to reach the most suitable one for the resistance of small marble pieces , after some trials he discovered that he is also responsible for the design & forms and utensils inspiration . samir shoukry lives this experiment with the sentiment of an expressive and creative artist which has been able to subdue one of the hardest materials to become a kind of texture with multi- colours and different forms he presents a naw solution to utensils art lover. This precedency has to be considered a new experiment which deserve contemplation and encouragement because invention is based upon trial , the artist feels that holding an exhibition is necessity to start an argument dialogue with his visitors and those who cares about our lift adornment . Samir shoukry is a creative energy , who can much present in marble carving and forming art… when following his production steps after his return italy , we can touch upon the truth and contemporary language understanding along with ancient oriental arts conductivity . HASSAN OSMAN Art Critic
We are celebrating today this marvelous achievement of a creative characteristic artist who was able to deal with the material with all its severity and solidity after a hard trials stage and much suffers to extract these materials from its original places where hardship & patient and delighting support to reach tamng granite and marble from its revolted virginal picture to be subdued for creating form obtained from our human existence where lift is overflowing with every fascinating beauty making sign for donation & construction and welfare in our good – nature land . The distinct artist samir shoukry ascending with a renovated art , adding to his previous marvelous performance a production representing a naw graceful dimension to the untensils art achieving the difficult equation of mixing and combining between the mollify clay material and unruly hard marble material to creat this great symmetry which achieve the harmony between contradicted materials with its inconsistent nature and the method of acting with the creative artist when diserving and accomplishing his production he is carrying on the story of our history and our good – nature land treasures repleted with every great and immortalit .. he is reforming those inveroment components to extract its gracious .. and re-expose it in this beautiful charme form . No wonder that this marvelous production is representing this beautifier soften touch fulfilled with flimsy sensation . No wonder that this will be amixture between the engraving forming heavy tools and the fine touch of a thin brush . Prof. Dr . Hussein EL – Gebali Head of Graphic Dept. Faculty of Fine – Arts , Cairo President of Plastic – Arts Syndicate
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Innocence and Immortality utentils The history pages are filled up with continuous confirmation to the tattling { if we love anything , surely and by all means it will give us } .. and perhaps the mutual intimate relation between most of the greats such as Mahmoud Mouktar – salah Abd-El-Kerim –Sigini form one part and hard rock and iron materials form other part proceeds – with love –their much brilliant creation which will never be historically forgoten .. The artist Samir Shoukry passion was sticked together with the marble and granite at ltalian mountains form the seventies beginning by an ardent art relation In Egypt he set up his studio at the bosom of sphinx and pyramids near Harrania village as if he is shaltering the immortality at the history shadow which surrounding his sensation . Daliy .. when the inheritance breezes gently coming form the land of civilization , the dewdrops falls on the pure nature feelings of the artist , who was fond of utensils… so , he started pouring his overflowing in it to quench by his assiduities the thirst of this art lovers due to its rarely creators .. Here , in his exhibition , he is approaching from the national popular inheritance to transform its simple fashion by clading it with a love dress which increase its beauty and deepening its chromatic value .. he ask for the fully innocent earthenware pottery and cover it with amulti- colours small marble pieces as it is a mosaic scraf .. love push him to additional courage shoot to altered the utensil form one side beholded piece to set us in motion around it as if it is acarved piece of art having apart value of beauty in each side .. he break the utensil formation by sequencely harmonizing its surface with differential and numerous levels . In his marble selection kinds and colours , his was intendively signing the name of Egypt in every art piece .. as those marble wears form Sinai treasures which he re- discovered are not less in beauty and grades then best international qualities . This creative artist is presenting a special unique melody , moving our prize and meritorious feelings towards him and for all faithfull lovers to Egypt . This is flower sprouted form the rocks heart .. heart of marble .. we should offer it our best attention care .. to incubate ..or at least to gratitude and welcome . Ibrahim Abd – El- Malak
Samir Shoukry is an over whelmed devoted lover to Egypt . He is an artist infatuated lover to the inheritance , and Egypt is filled up plently with inheritance . The solid stones are his favourite material which infuse it his reativities . Egypt can offer sufficiently sculptorers to saturate the world from art. From the flow of the great Nile , the lift artery gift from God to the selected peoples of Egypt . From the tender hearted sun of Egypt and its goodness valley . Samir Shoukry was normally sympathized to art,relating to his history and pluging into his inheritance With the noble behave of an cavalier, he challenged the most solid stones in the nature and insist to subdue it to his creation will, as previously ascertained by his ancestors when they recorded on the stones the first human civilization lessons. Accordingly, the stones find no-way excep complying with his chisels. In the today’s exhibition Samir Shoukry is presenting a new special view.. as he has always the tendency in his production towards his roots and inheritance , this time he is dealing with the ready made popular earthenware pottery after carried out by the primitive artist Ex.. Carafe . Gurlet . Waterjug .. jar ..and others from these pottery which was used mormally and traditionaly . In the Egyptian people daily lift specially with farmers and villagers . The utensil is affiliated to the Human history .. as it was the first useful form for drinking and preservingliquids and then followed to be the means of cokking foods . So, the utensil has been tightly engaged to his lift and become an essential part during the years of the Human Being history stages .. Consequently he attentively cares about it to the point of being way of making advance to goddess by arnamenting with symbols and prayers until it reached a Hallow degree . With the same feeling the artist Samir Shoukry is acting with the pottery .. he glorify and celebrate it..he dressed it a wear of onble solid materials .. form marble divided into small pieces stacket and stowed beside each in mosaic work method after selecting for each pottery the suitable colour relating to its form and size .. sometime he is covering the pottery shape completely with those pieces .. Else were he is leaving apart form the area surface with its original clay material while covering the remaining parts .. as if the artist is cutting and sewing awedding dress to each pottery considering it monvable and breathing living being which should be entertained due to its incentively exciting a prevenient history , thus after wearing another sensitive dimension which get us far from it’s sensuous benefit to a pretty contemporary existence. Really , the experiment is unique in its specific character and it’s donnation wealth . The artist appropriate all the invention pcssibilities in Egypt for his experiment .. the earthenware pottery carried out by a primitive popular artist from Egypt in regards to its form and size reachness .. The marble used in cladding with its full colours and kind selected from the nature creation in Egyption mountains . Form Egypt .. the bride and the wedding dress. This experiment of the artist Samir Shoukry brings to our mind a similar popular experiment called { Garlet of the seventh } . This garlet is to be fully dressed by means of the popular man with the best good- looking wears as A symbol ceremony of the first week elapse from the birth day of his female child .. Same done with the {Jug of the seventh} which is to be decorated and embellished for similar festival to the male child How wealthy is, the creative imagination of the Egyptian Human-Being who brings the small things to a spacious and windened horizons which set off additional inspiration dimension . Really .. the Egyptian is the civilization performance .. inhabited by acreation tremendous energy enabling him to convert what’s surrounding to an eternity Human values . And we have from the artist Samir Shoukry exhibition .. the example . Prof. Dr . Mostafa Abdel Moity Director Of The Egyptian Academ For Arts - Rome | 
