Hussein Bicar
Hussein Amin Bicar (January 2, 1913 – November 16, 2002) was one of Egypt’s most influential artists of the 20th century. Born in Alexandria to an Egyptian family, he showed artistic talent from a young age and even taught music as a boy. His mother supported his gift, and at 15 he moved to Cairo to study at the Higher School of Fine Arts, where European teachers shaped his early development. He excelled, finishing at the top of his class in 1933, and became friends with the painter Ahmed Sabri, who remained a mentor throughout his career.
Bicar spent more than six decades teaching art in schools and universities, and later writing and drawing for the press. He helped create a style of journalistic art that made newspaper illustrations feel closer to fine art. His work is known for its simple, clear lines and its Egyptian themes—Pharaonic imagery, peasants, Nubian scenes, and the landscapes of Alexandria. He believed that art should come from the subject and be both local and global in spirit.
He was the first Egyptian artist to illustrate Arabic children’s books and played a key role in developing this field. One major project was Sinbad, a children’s magazine started in 1952. He also illustrated the first illustrated Egyptian book, The Stream of Days by Taha Hussein, which led him to write and illustrate more children’s literature.
Bicar’s career as a journalist and illustrator included a stint with Akhbar El Yom as a foreign correspondent who produced illustrated reports for a world audience. He also wrote art criticism and a four-line verse series called The Rubaiyat. His philosophy was to avoid sticking to one style; he adapted to each subject, aiming to “give himself to the subject.”
His work extended beyond Egypt. In the 1930s and 1940s he traveled and taught in Morocco, learned Spanish, and even painted portraits during a journey around Africa. He contributed to a major Egyptian film project, The Eighth Wonder, which documented the Abu Simbel temple’s relocation. Bicar painted many scenes for the film, and some of his paintings are now in the Abu Simbel Museum.
Bicar was a passionate advocate for Egyptian heritage in modern art. His portraits and paintings often conveyed a spiritual, sculpted quality, reflecting his belief in the enduring dignity of the Egyptian soul. He remained active as an artist, teacher, critic, and writer for most of his life.
In the 1980s, he faced religious persecution when Bahá’ís were targeted in Egypt, but the charges were dropped due to his age, after a defense by lawyer Labib Moawad. He received several honors, and in 2017 Google honored his 104th birthday with a Doodle. Hussein Bicar passed away in 2002, remembered as a gentle, versatile artist who helped shape modern Egyptian art.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 20:41 (CET).