The photographer Selian, who worked between the 1920s-30s in Alexandria, is most probably Minas Selian of Bardizag, who emigrated from Turkey to Egypt in the late 1910s. He occupies a special place amidst Egyptian-Armenian photographers of that time. While he had a photographic studio in Alexandria, which serviced the middle and lower class representatives of the Arab and Armenian communities, Selian preferred to photograph in the crowded streets of the city. These rapidly made, snapshot images of outdoor festivities, official commemorations and especially sports events were shot using a small, handheld camera. 

With their irregular compositions and sharp contrasts, these documentary images illustrate the brisk development of Egypt’s dynamic modernity.  Selian should rightfully be considered as one of the pioneers of ‘straight’ documentary and photo-reportage genres in the history of Egyptian photography while his life and work deserve more in-depth study and exposure.

Vigen Galstyan, 2016