Reclaiming the narrative of the Egyptian avant-garde: Western derivatives or independent pioneers?
Following the success of her highly acclaimed first book, Modern Art in Egypt, Fatenn Mostafa-Kanafani's new work, The Egyptian Avant-Garde: Artists, Poets, and Rebels, reclaims Egypt's revolutionary art movements, positioning them as independent models within the global art historical canon. Navigating the complex intersection of art, politics and society, Kanafani demonstrates how Egypt's two most critical artist collectives—the Art & Liberty Group and the Contemporary Art Group—were at the forefront of a radical reimagining of Egypt. This book offers the first in-depth comparative study of these progressive cultural forces, and their ideological and visual disruptions, during Egypt's fight for independence from colonial rule and in the aftermath of the 1952 Revolution. Fatenn Mostafa-Kanafani is an art historian and scholar specializing in modern Egyptian art and the intersections of politics and culture. She built and currently manages one of the largest archives on modern Egyptian art.
STATUS: Forthcoming | 6/2/2026
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The Egyptian Avant-Garde Artists, Poets, and Rebels 1936–1973
Published by SKIRA. By Fatenn Mostafa-Kanafani.
Reclaiming the narrative of the Egyptian avant-garde: Western derivatives or independent pioneers?
Following the success of her highly acclaimed first book, Modern Art in Egypt, Fatenn Mostafa-Kanafani's new work, The Egyptian Avant-Garde: Artists, Poets, and Rebels, reclaims Egypt's revolutionary art movements, positioning them as independent models within the global art historical canon. Navigating the complex intersection of art, politics and society, Kanafani demonstrates how Egypt's two most critical artist collectives—the Art & Liberty Group and the Contemporary Art Group—were at the forefront of a radical reimagining of Egypt. This book offers the first in-depth comparative study of these progressive cultural forces, and their ideological and visual disruptions, during Egypt's fight for independence from colonial rule and in the aftermath of the 1952 Revolution.
Fatenn Mostafa-Kanafani is an art historian and scholar specializing in modern Egyptian art and the intersections of politics and culture. She built and currently manages one of the largest archives on modern Egyptian art.
