Information regarding H. Dilekyan’s biography is scarce. His studio operated for in Alexandria in the 1930s and the early 1940s. At the beginning of his career he collaborated with Bella – a photographer of possibly Hungarian origins. A number of large prints bearing Dilekyan’s stamp were put on sale on EBAY in 2015. The polished aesthetic qualities and complete mastery of modernist style in these prints are a testimony of Dilekyan’s superb craftsmanship and artistic inclinations. Besides portraits, this collection of vintage prints also included a few fashion and experimental nude studies, which suggest that the photographer closely followed the progressive currents of French and Eastern European art photography – possibly through his association with Bella. The fact that the photographer has never been mentioned in any studies of modern Egyptian photography and the small quantities of his surviving works, indicate that his career was short-lived.

Vigen Galstyan, 2016