• The Kapsalis Archive
  • Painting
  •  a large and comprehensive collection of artworks, letters, sketches, and ephemera from Seif and Adham Wanly consisting of 5 paintings and pastels by Seif Wanly, 2 paintings and pastels by Adham Wanly, 1 sketch by Ahmed Fahmi, approx. 140 anatomical sketches, drawings, and studies by Seif and Adham Wanly, a set of approx. 23 postcards, hand-painted cards, and love letters from Fanny Ezersky to the brothers, a further approximately 50 greeting cards, exhibition catalogs, and other ephemera 
    the archive approximately covers the period 1956-1960 
Estimation
£15,000
20,859 USD
- £25,000
34,766 USD
Unsold
Artwork Description

The Kapsalis Archive is one of the most astonishing and remarkable collections of its kind. A priceless compendium of artworks, personal correspondences, exhibition ephemera, postcards, drawings, studies, and sketches spanning several years of the Wanly brothers illustrious careers, it provides an extraordinary insight into the most intimate aspects of their personal lives, as well as painting a vignette of the charm and excitement of cosmopolitan Alexandria in the 1950's.

The Archive, which contains over a hundred separate articles, spans an immense range of material. Dozens of anatomical studies emulating the work of renowned artists like Degas, Matisse and Boucher, evidence the Wanly brothers keen awareness and appreciation of European artistic trends. A set of portrait paintings and pastels serve as incredible artworks in their own right, marvellous and expressive examples from the artists atelier. Dozens of postcards and personal correspondences give us an incomparably intimate insight into the personal sphere of the two artists, most notably the tragic love story of Adham Wanly and his English lover Fanny Erzesky, whose tender and passionate love letters end with dismay and tragedy when she learns of Adham's premature passing.

Rarely do collectors get the opportunity to acquire a group of works with such deep biographical penetration. Offered in raw format, with dozens of untranslated Arabic letters and documents, the collection presents a significant opportunity for further research and rightly deserves to be meticulously studied, researched and contextualised so that it can serve as a vital resource in understanding the lives and careers of two of Egypt's most prolific artists.

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Artist Performance at Auctions

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