Ahmed Morsi

Ahmed Morsi (born 1930) is an Egyptian artist, art critic and poet.

Morsi was born in the coastal city Alexandria, Egypt, in 1930.

In 1949, he started writing poetry and developed this talent in parallel with his painting – publishing his first Diwan, “Songs of the Temples / Steps in Darkness” at the age of 19.

During the years 1952-53, he studied art with Silvio Becchi, son of Italian master Otorino Becchi, in Alexandria.

Early on, Ahmed Morsi was initiated into Alexandria's literary society as well as the city's very own rising group of artists.

By his early twenties, he was participating in group shows with Egypt's most notable modern artists, including A Al Gazzar, H El Telmisani, I Massouda, F Kamel, H Nada and M Moussa.

In 1954, he graduated from the University of Alexandria, Faculty of Arts with a major in English Literature.

Morsi moved to Baghdad, Iraq in 1955, where he taught English to supplement his two-year stay.

This was a time of a cultural renaissance in Iraq, when Baghdad was a center for the literati, the artists and the intellectuals.

It was in Baghdad that he developed a friendship and a working relationship with several Iraqi writers and painters, among them Abd al-Wahhab Al-Bayati, Fouad al-Tikerly and Ardash Kakavian; and these relationships continued to produce noteworthy creative cooperation as well as lifelong friendships throughout the coming decades.

Returning to Egypt, he moved to Cairo in 1957.

In these years, Ahmed Morsi was the first Egyptian to work alongside Egypt's acclaimed playwrights, Alfred Farag, Abdel Rahman Al Sharkawi, designing stage sets and costumes for The National Theater at the original, Khedieval, Cairo Opera House – art forms that had until then previously been relegated only to Italian designers.

He also partnered with Abdel Hadi Al Algazzar and co-designed stage sets for "Bury the Dead" by American playwright Irwin Shaw at the Cairo Opera House.

Other projects with Al Gazzar included a book of Morsi's poetry alongside Al Gazzar's drawings.

The book was never published due to Al Gazzar's untimely passing, however the poetry/drawings live on.

In 1968, he co-founded the avant-garde magazine Galerie 68 with Edwar Al Kharrat, Ibrahim Mansour, Gamil Atteya, Sayed Hegab and others.

This publication immediately became Egypt's most reputable source as the voice of the new modernism.

With these years began the Artist's journey into the world of criticism, publishing critiques on both art and literature, both of which remaining intimate domains.

- Translated “A View from a Bridge” by Arthur Miller, which translation and play was staged in the 1970s by The National Theater

- The League of Books published his book, “Contemporary American Poetry III”

- The Supreme Council of Culture published his book, “American Contemporary Art”

In 1974, Ahmed Morsi moved to New York City, where he continues to paint, write and critique from his Manhattan home.

He wrote two items for Grand Larousse Encyclopédique (1975); “Art in Egypt” and “Art in Iraq”.

In 1976, like many artists residing in the NYC area, he took up the art of lithography at The New School, the art of printmaking at The Art Student League and added yet another dimension to his creative tools and in the last 20 years, the Artist embraced photography – the last art form to be included in Ahmed Morsi's extensive palette.

Private collections in Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, France, UK and USA

Library established a Biennial solely for this new creative vehicle, “The Artist’s Book”

- Beirut

Atteya and Sayed Hegab – which played a pivotal role in developing the new-modernism of Arabic literature

- The Iraqi Ministry of Culture published his book, “Picasso”

Again the pioneer, Ahmed Morsi introduced a new creative vehicle to the art public in Egypt with his 1995 show: “The Artist’s Book”.

Following his exhibition, a new Biennial, The Artist's Book, was created in Alexandria.