{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O1811359"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1811359/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2026PM6898/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2026PM6898/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"high","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2026PM6898","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2026PM6901","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2026PM6899","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2026PM6900","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":{"_iiif_pres":"https://iiif.vam.ac.uk/collections/O1811359/manifest.json","_alt_iiif_pres":[]}},"record":{"systemNumber":"O1811359","accessionNumber":"ME.1-2026","objectType":"Sculpture","titles":[{"title":"Farmer, Port of Alexandria","type":"assigned by artist"}],"summaryDescription":"<i>Farmer, Port of Alexandria</i>, is a wall sculpture by Egyptian artist Yasmine El Meleegy, who has used found ceramic pieces as material for a contemporary mosaic. The piece is part of a series that engages with the legacy of Egyptian sculptor and industrialist Fathy Mahmoud (1918–1982), who is known for his monumental statuary and important public sculptures throughout Egypt. In 1948 Mahmoud founded a porcelain factory in Alexandria which became emblematic of post-independence aspirations to make art available to all, and democratise access to beautiful objects. \r\n\r\nEl Meleegy uses shards of Mahmoud’s mass-produced porcelain — plates, mug handles, and ceramic fragments, some with the ‘FM’ factory logo visible — and assembles them into new compositions that echo motifs from his public murals. This particular work is inspired by a now-inaccessible mural located at the Port of Alexandria, where Mahmoud portrayed factory workers, farmers, and fishermen as symbols of national self-sufficiency. We see the hands of a fruit picker harvesting lemons and pomegranates. \r\n\r\nThe work celebrates Mahmoud as both an artist and entrepreneur, whose creative and industrial work shaped Egyptian identity in the mid-twentieth century. El Meleegy’s piece is also an ode to regeneration: she transforms broken, waste pottery into something new, reorienting porcelain from its functional domestic use into an artwork that celebrates Egypt’s land and those who work it. \r\n","physicalDescription":"The work is made of porcelain sherds from the factory of Fathy Mahmoud. This particular piece is inspired by a large-scale wall sculpture by Mahmoud at the Port of Alexandria, which is no longer accessible. The artist has selected a small vignette for the basis of her work here. ","artistMakerPerson":[{"name":{"text":"El Meleegy, Yasmine","id":"AUTH411950"},"association":{"text":"Artist","id":"AAT25103"},"note":""}],"artistMakerOrganisations":[],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[{"text":"Porcelain","id":"AAT10662"},{"text":"","id":""}],"techniques":[{"text":"mosaic","id":"AAT138684"},{"text":"assemblage (sculpture technique)","id":"AAT138696"},{"text":"","id":""}],"materialsAndTechniques":"The backing is Marmox board with a wood and foam structure.","categories":[{"text":"Sculpture","id":"THES48896"},{"text":"Mosaic","id":"THES253095"}],"styles":[],"collectionCode":{"text":"MES","id":"THES48607"},"images":["2026PM6898","2026PM6901","2026PM6899","2026PM6900"],"imageResolution":"high","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"002","id":"THES344586"},"free":"","case":"","shelf":"","box":""}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"Wall sculpture","id":"THES413064"}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[{"place":{"text":"Cairo","id":"x28776"},"association":{"text":"","id":""},"note":""}],"productionDates":[{"date":{"text":"2025","earliest":"2025-01-01","latest":"2025-12-31"},"association":{"text":"","id":""},"note":""}],"associatedObjects":[],"creditLine":"Jameel Acquisition","dimensions":[{"dimension":"Length","value":"80","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":""},{"dimension":"Width","value":"80","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":"The bottom left-hand corner is rounded; the measurement has been taken as though the piece is square. "},{"dimension":"Height","value":"8","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":""},{"dimension":"","value":"","unit":"","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":""}],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[],"objectHistory":"","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Yasmine El Meleegy, 'Farmer, Port of Alexandria', 2025, porcelain, Marmox board, wood, binding","bibliographicReferences":[],"production":"","productionType":{"text":"","id":""},"contentDescription":"","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[],"associatedPerson":[],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[],"contentConcepts":[],"contentLiteraryRefs":[],"galleryLabels":[],"partNumbers":["ME.1-2026"],"accessionNumberNum":"1","accessionNumberPrefix":"ME","accessionYear":2026,"otherNumbers":[],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":[],"recordModificationDate":"2026-02-27","recordCreationDate":"2025-10-22","availableToBook":false}}