Born to a francophone, aristocratic family, Seif Wanly is considered one of the leading artists of 20th century Egypt. After training at the hands of Italian painter Ottorino Bicchi, he opened his own studio alongside his brother Adham Wanly in 1935. Seif was taken by the performance arts, and depicted numerous scenes of ballet, opera, and music concerts with a distinct ability to express vivid and dynamic movement and rhythm. He also depicted scenes of daily life including motherhood, the landscapes of Egypt and counted Nubia as a source of inspiration, painting it’s villages and it’s people. His signature bright colors, form and composition fuse together geometric shapes, with Futurist and Cubist influences.
In 1957, he became a teacher in the department of painting at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Alexandria. His cultural contribution was vast, he also worked as a technical advisor for several cultural palaces in the city, and was president of the National Society of Fine Arts in Alexandria. Wanly’s exhibition history includes the Alexandria Biennale of 1959 in which he won first prize, the Sao Paolo Biennale in 1958, Exposition Egypte-France, Pavillon de Marsan in Paris in 1949. He was honored with various awards including the Mahmoud Mokhtar prize in 1936, founded by feminist icon Huda Shaarawi and the Egyptian State Merit Award in 1973 among others.
His work can be found in various private and public collections worldwide, including Barjeel Art Foundation, Dalloul Art Foundation, the Museum of Egyptian Modern Art in Cairo, the Museum of Fine Arts in Alexandria, Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art in Doha, and his own wing at the Mahmoud Said Museum, shared with his brother and fellow modern artist Adham Wanly.
