(b. 1897)
Born in Alexandria in 1897 to an aristocratic Alexandrian family, Mahmoud Said is considered as one of the pioneers of Modern Egyptian art. His father, then Prime Minister of Egypt, Mahmoud Said Pasha was a keen supporter of culture and arts and also the uncle of Queen Farida, King Farouk’s first wife. Post high school, Said attended the French school of Law, receiving his degree in 1919, followed by a career in jurisdiction as a lawyer and prosecutor and then as a judge in Mansouria, Alexandria and Cairo. He rose to become the Justice Councilor of the Alexandria Mixed Court and in 1974, resigned from legal work to dedicate himself solely to his art. Said joined the studios of Italian painters, Emilha Fazotano de Foreno, a resident of Alexandria who had studied at the Florence Academy. He quickly learned the classical methods of drawing and took further lessons alongside Artoro Zananeri, before leaving for Paris in 1920 for further studies at the Academie Julian. Said is considered to be the foremost painter of the pioneer generation of Egyptian artists and in 1973, the artist’s home was converted into a museum that houses some of his prominent works. Mahmoud Said’s works are exhibited in private and public collections, including that of the Museum of Modern Egyptian Art and the Ministry of Culture in Cairo as well as Mathat: Arab Museum of Modern Art in Doha.