Sinai Desert

Agnes Mills

Agnes Mills’ artistic career was among the most prolific for her time and peer group, having been a woman - and the youngest instructor - in WPA in the 1930s. By the time she created “Sinai Desert” she had a long list of exhibitions and collaborations behind her, and she had made her mark as one of the leading viscosity printmakers of the mid 20th century. In this image the breadth of her expertise is on display, capturing the essence of the Sinai Peninsula’s arid central landscape with her use of deep texture on the plate and the layering of bright colors.

The Sinai Peninsula, which forms a land bridge between Asia and Africa, is a unique map of Egypt’s varied climates, bordered on the sides by the Gulfs of Suez and Aqaba, its head crowned by the Meditteranean Sea, its point dipping into the Red Sea. Its central landmass sweeps upward into mountainous terrain, where it features some of the coldest temperatures in all of Egypt in winter, often reaching 3 degrees Fahrenheit. Yet, along its shores are coral reefs rich with marine life and temperate waters, attracting visitors from around the world.