Alireza Shojaian’s Richly Symbolic “Hamed Sinno et un de ses Frères”

“Hamed Sinno et un de ses Frères” by Alireza Shojaian. (Acrylic and color pencil on wood board, 150 x 220 cm.)

Notes Shojaian:

As a witness to the pregnancy of Gabrielle d’Estrées, a painting was commissioned and completed in the year of 1594. From an unknown artist, this painting shows Gabrielle d’Estrées in a bathtub with her sister pinching her nipple, in a sign of the upcoming motherhood while Gabrielle holds the ring of Henry of France, father of her soon to be child. This painting bears the same composition of a painting from 1571, “Diane de Paitieres” by Francoise Clouet.

Therefore, I decided to use the same composition as “Gabrielle d’Estrées et une des ses sœurs” to portray, in my very own way, a particular moment in our recent history when, during a concert by Mashrou’ Leila in Cairo on September 22, 2017, many concert goers were arrested by the police for waving the rainbow flag in support for the LGBTQ community during the performance. This governmental intolerance to this particular community is recursive in most Middle Eastern countries.

I captured this not-to-be documented event by dedicating this collaborative artwork to Hamed Sinno, the lead singer of Mashrou’ Leila and portraying him pinching the nipple of Anubis, the ancient Egyptian god, who holds Ankh, the symbol of immortality. The tree symbolizes the growth of this tolerance movement. In the background, the water fountain symbolizes water; the element that can take any form or shape yet can penetrate rock.

See also the previous posts:
• “A Painting of a Desired, and Desiring, Subject”
• “Like a Classical Sculpture”
• Symbol of Enlightenment

And at The Leveret's brother site, The Wild Reed, see:
• Coming Out in Africa and the Middle East
• Parvez Sharma on Islam and Homosexuality
• Omar Akersim: Muslim and Gay
• Progressive Perspectives on Islam and Homosexuality in the Aftermath of Orlando