The Magic of Silk

For a not-so-conventional art exhibition where you can quench your thirst for both art and fashion, head out to the “Magic of Silk,” the first hand-silk painting exhibition in Egypt held tonight at 7:30 pm at the Russian Culture Center. Not a widely known art form, artist Olga Belova is introducing the art of silk painting to the Egyptian art scene, but you’re wrong if you think this is the same old paintings, statuettes and sculptures sort of exhibition. Belova is introducing her art, yes, on the good old painting boards, but also on scarves, ties, dresses and shirts — so there’s something there for the art collector or the fashionista side of you. “I am painting on scarves, ties, bags, wedding dresses; whatever is silk,” Belova sums it up. Ranging from a classic painting of a tiger on natural silk to display proudly up on your wall and all the way to a funky biker drawn on a t-shirt, Belova’s work is diversified and hold conventional as well as modern twists to it. The diversity of the images and surfaces she uses in her paintings reflect the diversity in her techniques; Belova uses the traditional Chinese technique of silk painting but enhanced through a modern technique. “These days you can find different types of silk painting, [one of those types] is called Batik, which is a splash of colors on material and doesn’t give a certain picture; just different colors mixed up on material,” says Belova. “I am [following] the traditional Chinese type of painting, transferring the picture on to the silk. […] What I am doing now is a mixture of the traditional Chinese way and a modern way of painting,” Born in Russia, Belova was raised in a city near Japan where she was able to learn about silk painting and slowly developing a taste for it. But coming to live in Egypt 14 years ago, Belova was surprised to see silk painting was nowhere near popular or known here. You would find the odd painting or scarf, but the quality and quantity left a lot to be desired. Belova is holding her first exhibition, and hopefully the first of many to come, and it is only on for one night tonight and will then move to Alexandria to open on Wednesday 15 at 7:30 at the Russian Center for Science and Culture  in Alexandria. Russian Culture Center, 127 Tahrir Street, Dokki, Giza. Russian Center for Science and Culture, Bab El Sharky, El Batlasa 5, Alexandria.