An artist with an interesting academic background, artist Sherine Nazmy sure is fascinating.
Sherine Nazmy studied mechanical engineering and global business. She has also been painting for around 20 years, and has made the decision to become a professional artist. We sit down with her to learn more about her art and journey.
As we mentioned before, Sherine Nazmy’s academic journey is a rich one, and one which has definitely helped her art career. “Engineers are very organized in our way of thinking;
I think of the painting and I draw and visualize it to a big extent in my mind before I put it on canvas,”
Sherine tells. Having studied engineering at the AUC, she was blessed with flexibility which allowed her to study beyond her core major. She then did her post-graduate studies in global business from Oxford in the UK. Her career of choice, though, remains in the arts.
Artist Sherine Nazmy is self-taught.
She attended an art workshop which gave her confidence that she can actually become an artist. “I remember the very first day of the workshop, I came home with one complete painting; I will never forget that day or that painting which I cherish until today,” Sherine says. However, it is the fact that she did not study art academically which made her paint so freely, “I don’t have boundaries; I could do a blue face with purple eyes and green lips.
I believe that there is no right or wrong in art,” Sherine explains.
The brilliant artist Sherine Nazmy has developed her unique style by practicing.
“I explore and draw different topics, using palettes, and with different materials,” she continues,
“I always keep iconic artists like Dali and Picasso in mind, they both did multiple topics on different mediums across the years.”
However, when it comes to the talent versus practice debate, Sherine believes a combination of both is essential. “I have been painting abstract faces for a few years now, and recently I painted the world leaders in 2020 – President Trump, Queen Elizabeth and the President of China,” Sherine continues, “without talent, practice and the idea together, the message wouldn’t have stood out; it would have been meaningless.”
Making a career out of art is no easy feat according to artist Sherine Nazmy.
Yet, that is the direction in which she went. She does not believe it can ever just become work and lose its magic.
“Art is so liberating; I would not want to consider it a ‘typical job,’” she explains.
Artist Sherine Nazmy believes, especially due to her experience abroad, that the Egyptian art scene needs to be more accepting of various techniques and ideas. She tells that abroad, being different is deeply welcome. However, she goes on to explain that some galleries are beginning to approach new talents; one of such galleries is Arteology Egypt. “In October 2020 they welcomed me in their Art Town Vol. 2 exhibition, especially for being different and despite the fact that I haven’t studied art academically. They exhibited my 2020 collection which addressed tarot cards, world leaders and the COVID19 pandemic time,” Sherine elaborates.
Social Media has been an interesting addition to the art world.
Artist Sherine Nazmy sees it as an advantage. “It gave artists more chances to share their artwork and interact with a wider audience as well as other artists,” she continues,
“Artists are no longer limited to art galleries, specific exhibiting timelines or specific demographics.”
Artist Sherine Nazmy intends on continuing with her art journey. “Spreading joy through my art has been a personal motive. You can’t imagine how delighted I am when I see my clients happy with their paintings,” she concludes.
Finally, artist Sherine Nazmy also wants to give back.
In the latest Art Town Vol. 2 exhibition, with the support of the Arteology team, they exhibited and sold hand-painted masks which Sherine painted last summer to raise awareness on the importance of wearing masks. The proceeds all went to charity. Sherine hopes she can do more work of this kind, and we cannot wait to see her doing it.