The image of the modern Arab man
The photographer Scarlett Coten wants to look beyond accepted stereotypes of Arab men, exposing a more diverse, and perhaps softer image.
Egypt
Hassan Khan and his 6 minute film “Jewel”
Last year, while visiting Okwui Enwezor’s Triennale at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris (titled: “Intense Proximity”), I was struck by one specific piece: “Jewel”, a 6 minute short film by Egyptian artist Hassan Khan. As already noted by Orlando Reade writing about The Ungovernables, this short video is as much enigmatic as enthralling: Even if […]
What is going in Egypt?
Is this Egypt’s second revolution, a military coup, or an agglomeration of both (“Democratic Coup”, anyone)? And then there's the media noise.
When the material writes itself
The comedians Jon Stewart and Bassem Youssef and Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood.
Egyptian Graffiti and Gender Politics
An interview with Soraya Morayef, who is documenting the graffiti scene in Cairo, Beirut, Libya and Palestine.
Egyptian women won’t be blamed for sexual assaults
Also, dispelling the myth that all Arab men systematically oppress and victimize Arab women.
Another Side of the Story
An interview with the managing editor of "Daily News Egypt," two-years after the Egyptian uprising.
Rap Comes Home
It’s quite a weekend for New York’s prodigal child. Hip-Hop, that burst of youthful energy that was put out into the universe 30 plus years ago is coming back home from several places at once. It’s arriving at a time when Rap music, in its birthplace, confusingly straddles the realms of hyper-capitalism, political activism, youth expression, marginalized’s […]
There are no laws against photography
The latest in a series of interviews by Roxsanne Dyssel. This time, with Egyptian photographer and blogger, Mohamed Elshahed.
The individual vs the cause
The enduring controversies around Egyptian-American activist Mona Eltahawy.
Social Media in Africa’s Revolutions
How anonymous parties define, construct, and support uprisings in Africa via social media.
Should Mohamed Morsi be TIME’s Person of the Year?
Last week, as he made a bid to become Egypt’s latest dictator, plunging the country into a constitutional crisis, and drawing new crowds to Tahrir Square, TIME magazine interviewed Mohamed Morsi. The ‘exclusive’ interview took the title ‘We’re Learning How to Be Free’ — which, in light of Morsi’s recent attempt to grant himself un-democratic […]
10 African films to watch out for, N°3
‘O Grande Kilapy’ (“The Great Kilapy” — ‘kilapy’ is Kimbundu for ‘scheme’, or ‘fraud’), the new film by director Zézé Gamboa, portrays the last decade of Portuguese rule in Angola through the story of Joao Fraga (played by Lazaro Ramos): The film’s facebook page has some clips. Also check this production video for the images […]
Chop Cassava
Five filmmaking collectives from the African continent that are reinterpreting and reinvigorating notions of collaboration and distribution.
Spring revolution or a summer of discontent
Can North Africans define their own futures, away from the inventions of old white men in think tanks in Washington DC?
Egypt after Edward Said
Last December, when the Institut d’Egypte was burned down, I thought immediately of Edward Said. Napoleon’s expedition to Europe is described at the beginning of Orientalism, where it is a classic example of how academic and scientific discoveries anticipate and enable imperial conquest. The Institut was established shortly after Napoleon’s invasion, and remained a powerful reminder […]
Tank Girl
Nadine Hammam’s work turned out to be “too risky” for Art Dubai. Her new exhibition, Tank Girl, opens tonight at the Gallery Misr (Cairo, Egypt).
“There is nothing left” in Alexandria
The emigrants Céline Condorelli interviewed about their past lives in Alexandria, Egypt, often arrived at this conclusion: “Il n’y a plus rien [There is nothing left].” Condorelli, an artist of Italian and Egyptian descent currently based in London, found that Alexandria was experienced, even in the classical age, as a a city “that has been”. She sees melancholia in the […]
The Noise of Cairo
Last month the Daily Beast decided that Cairo had lost its voice. It reminded me of a New York Times article which renamed Cairo The City Where You Can’t Hear Yourself Scream. It’s a city (or something), not a commercial for cough medicine. This seems to be a commonplace for writing about cities in developing countries; […]
January in Cairo IV: the two faces of Egyptian art
Om Kalthoum, the late great Egyptian singer, stands in the studio of Khaled Hafez. Her eyes are closed, her mouth open in song or lament. There is not one of her, but six (including a shadow), laser-printed repetitively across a wide canvas. She has her trademark hair, evening dress, large earrings. One hand raised in emphasis. […]