Selected works 1993-2004 
Youssef Nabil (b. Egypt, 1972) grew up in the glory days of Egyptian cinema. His photographs are inspired by this world of glamour, elegance and melodrama which was known as Hollywood on the Nile. Nabil photographs contemporary actors, singers and artists as the Egyptian film stars of yesteryear. As a teenager Nabil liked the old technique of hand-colouring black and white photographs - which was still very common in Egypt. He decided to colour his images using that same technique in a contemporary way. In his work Nabil leaves room for buried drama: his portraits also play with the desire for immortality. Youssef Nabil learned his trade with photographers David Lachapelle in New York and Mario Testino in Paris. He sees his photographs as an encounter with the people he loves.