Youssef Nabil. Once Upon a Dream

As well as the Henri Cartier-Bresson exhibition - which will occupy the first floor of the exhibition space - Palazzo Grassi will also host a monographic exhibition dedicated to artist Youssef Nabil (Cairo, 1972), titled ‘Once Upon a Dream’, and curated by Matthieu Humery and Jean-Jacques Aillagon.

Made after an ancient technique widely used for family portraits or film posters that once featured on the streets of Cairo, Youssef Nabil’s hand-painted photographs revive a legendary Egypt, between symbolism and abstraction.

The search for the sources of identity, the ideological, social and political concerns of the twenty-first century, and melancholy for a distant past are key themes driving Nabil’s artistic persona. Organised into thematic sections showing the artist’s earliest work through to his most recent production, the exhibition invites visitors to immerse themselves in the artist’s progression. Further insights are provided by the artist’s film production through the presentation of his three videos Arabian Happy Ending, I Saved My Belly Dancer and You Never Left.