By Nile El Wardani
Little is unique about the components used in the art of Mohamed Khalil Mandour. They are simply water, clay, a wheel and kiln—the tools of a potter. What is exceptional is his use of those elements to express his artistic vision, capturing an experience of perfect balance and abundance within the confines of a vessel.
The purpose of his art, he says, is in the impression.
“The beauty of art is in its simplicity. You leave yourself and you produce.”*
Born in 1950 near the centuries-old mosque of Amr ibn al-As and raised in the al Fawakhir (Potters) district of Fustat, the artist began his childhood without a father, who died before the young Mandour reached the age of one.
