George Abdel Masih Al Bahgoury or George Bahgoury (جورج البهجورى) is an Egyptian-French artist. An accomplished painter and sculptor, he is most famous as a
caricaturist and
political cartoonist.
Life and career
Bahgoury was born in 1932 into a
CopticChristian family in Bahgora, a small village in
Nag Hammadi,
Upper Egypt hence the name of his family, ‘Bahgoury’ (coming from Bahgora). In 1953, he embarked on his career as a political cartoonist, a role that would see him featured in Sabah Al Khair and Rose El Youssef. In 1955, he studied painting at the
Faculty of Fine Arts in Zamalek,
Cairo, under the guidance of the Egyptian artist
Hussein Bikar. In 1970, he studied at the
Academy of Fine Arts in Paris. Soon thereafter, in 1975, he ceased publishing as a cartoonist.
A Silver Medalist for his painting "A Face from Egypt", Bahgoury's artwork has been widely displayed in galleries and museums, including the
Louvre Museum, the
Museum of Modern Art in
Amman, the
Museum of Modern Art in Cairo, and the Al Masar Gallery for Contemporary Art in Zamalek, Cairo.
Exhibitions
He staged many exhibitions in Egypt and abroad around. Some of the most important:
Local exhibitions
1976, 15th Spring Exhibition – Cairo.
2004, 1st Exhibition of Press Illustrations, at Palace of Arts. Cairo.
2005, 29th National Exhibition of Fine Arts. Cairo.
2006, "Ramdaniat" Exhibition at Salama Gallery – Mohandessen. Cairo.
2007, "Art and Grant" Exhibition at Al-Oruba Rotary Club. Cairo.
2007, 1st Festival of Fine Creation, "30th General Exhibition and 1st Fine Art Fair". Cairo.
2008, Festival of Sketches and Mini Tableaus at Shadecor Gallery – Heliopolis. Cairo.
2008, Caricature Exhibition at Mahmoud Saeed Center of Museums – Alexandria.
International exhibitions
1966, Venice Biennail – Italy.
1965, Alexandria Biennail – Egypt.
1977, Exhibition of the Contemporary Art – Sudan.
1984, Contemporary Arab Art Exhibition – Tunisia.
2005, 2nd International Biennail of Book Fancy – Alexandria Library. Egypt.