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Farha Sayeed
Farha Sayeed,
wife of an Indian diplomat, picked up
Egg
Art
more than a decade ago and improvised and experimented with
the fusion of Indian and Islamic elements to this otherwise
Western art.
Farha, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature,
pursues varied interests in arts and crafts. While she has
passion for Egg Decorations and Silk Painting, she is
equally adept at charcoal painting, Thermo Cole painting,
Tile Painting,
Aluminium
foil work, Glass Painting, glitter and
zardori
work and soft-toy making.
Farha's repertoire of egg art include a
wide selection of decorated Ostrich, Emu, Goose, Duck,
Turkey, Guinea and Hen eggs. Each of Farha’s eggshells are
intricately cut, carved and decorated by hand and ornamented
using pearls, beads, crystals, brocade, velvet, satin,
golden laces and rhinestone chains, making each piece a
masterpiece and one of its kind. Farha employs various
techniques for decorating egg shells like cutting, carving,
decoupage, trolling, etching, engraving, dyeing and bead
work.
Farha creates each egg art piece with great precision and
ingenuity, involving several man hours of intricate work.
The resulting Objets d’Art are masterpieces which
would lead the connoisseurs of
art on a voyage into the realm of
beauty and splendour.
She uses a high speed tool for cutting to reduce torque and
thus prevent shattering. Shells are treated then with liquid
polymer to strengthen and preserve their natural beauty. The
eggs are mounted on beautiful silver and golden stands.
All eggs used for artistry belong to hatchery or farm grown
birds only. No eggs are taken from the wild.
Farha’s collection of
decorated eggs was first displayed in October 2003 for a
month by the Art Lovers’ Group of the renowned Danish
Pharmaceutical Company H. Lundbeck A/S.
Farha’s maiden full-fledged solo exhibition of Decorated
Eggs and Silk Paintings
was
hosted by the
Frederiksberg
Commune, Denmark at Byggeriets Hus
from April 8-May 9, 2004.
A part of her collection of decorated
eggs was also displayed in the International Ramadan
Exhibition titled "Ramadan
Around the World" held at
Intercontinental Hotel Jeddah on 16-17th October, 2005 which
featured cultural exhibits of arts and crafts from several
countries of Asia and the Middle East.
Farha's second solo exhibition,
'EGGCELLENCE'
was held at Reda Art Gallery in Jeddah from 14-16 June, 2008
and was inaugurated by Her Royal Highness Princess Fahda
Bint Al-Saud. The exhibition was received with great
enthusiasm and interest by
connoisseurs of
art.
Her first solo exhibition in India, ‘EGGXOTICA’, was held
from April 11-15, 2010 at the prestigious
Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, New Delhi,
which was inaugurated by Dr Shashi Tharoor, former Under
Secretary General of the UN and India’s former Minister of
State for External Affairs.
Farha is a member of the
International Egg
Art Guild
(IEAG), which is a non-profit association of artists,
artisans, and craftspeople who work with natural eggs as an
art or folk art medium.
Farha is a pioneer in promoting Egg Art in India. Several
articles have been written on her art in prestigious
newspapers and magazines of India and abroad.
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