Al-Gid (The Grandfather) 1999
Using warm, earthy mixes of color, Zahran created the image of his father, Motamid. Motamid was a farmer and spent decades working the Delta soil on his farm in Monifia, Egypt - primarily planting corn, cotton, and clover.
Two plots of green set a background from which the body of Motamid emerges, underneath a masterful continuum of shaded cloth. The Golden Shah - with many folds - is draped around the farmer’s shoulders.
* Al-Gid is currently in private collection in Detroit, Michigan.
In 2007, Zahran participated with Farid Fadel, Samir Fouad and Abdel Aal Hassan in an exhibition titled “Portrait Quartet”. The exhibition gathered Egypt’s leading portrait artists and presented eight works at the Center for International Cultural Cooperation. Al-Gid, Zahran’s 1999 creation, was an iconic contribution to the event.