Cairo Street Art
-
In the name of Egypt
Before January 25th 2011, political street art in Cairo was all but completely absent, and artists were under constant threat from agents of the Mubarak regime. The art that emerged during the uprising took many forms, from cursory spray paint to ornate Egyptian calligraphy. While the revolution happened all over Egypt, some locations saw greater conflict - such as Sharia Nubar on either side of the Interior Ministry. The first killings to come out of the revolution in Cairo happened in these blocks, as revolutionaries were targeted by snipers. This painting, which says, 'In the name of Egypt' is less than five minutes from the Ministry.
-
Nationalism
Nationalism, revolution, patriotism, anti-nationalism, playfulness, anger and sadness are all represented in Cairo's emerging street art and expose the wide range of the politics behind the artists themselves. At times street art in Cairo takes on an almost Soviet communal nationalism, other pieces demand the fall of the state altogether.
-
I am the People
-
27 May
As the revolution has aged, Egyptians have become increasingly frustrated at the pace of change, skeptical of Field Marshall Tantawi - the de facto ruler of Egypt - and concerned about co-option of the revolution itself. In order to maintain the pressure on Tantawi and the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, youth groups have called for a number of subsequent mass protests in Tahrir and across the country. These have been announced through social media and street art. The Flames of this Molotov Cocktail spell '27 May', a massive return to Tahrir.
-
Tomorrow
-
Go to hell Mubarak
-
No
-
Martyrs of the Revolution
Larger than life memorial murals of revolutionary martyrs have been painted all across Cairo. Each shows a likeness of the person killed, accompanied by name, profession, and age. Some have quickly been painted over by public workers, while others like this one on the island of Zemalek, have remained.
-
Martyrs of the Revolution
Larger than life memorial murals of revolutionary martyrs have been painted all across Cairo. Each shows a likeness of the person killed, accompanied by name, profession, and age. Some have quickly been painted over by public workers, while others like this one on the island of Zemalek, have remained.
-
Ghosts
Stenciled faces of those who died during the uprising in Egypt have begun to appear all over the city.
-
Ghosts
Stenciled faces of those who died during the uprising in Egypt have begun to appear all over the city.
-
Screamer
Despite a total internet blackout beginning on January 26th, text messaging and Facebook coordinated much of the revolutionary action, and twitter archived its progression. T-Shirts in Tahrir proclaim Twitter, Facebook, Google, and YouTube to be 'Methods of Freedom', and they figure prominantly in this Mural on Zamalek, an Island in the middle of the Nile.
-
Think
Stenciled light bulbs have appeared all over Cairo, alternately interpreted to suggest that people think, or that light is finally shining on the city.
-
I love my country
Signpainters are the traditional street artists of Cairo, using their calligraphy skills in advertising everything from bakeries to medical doctors. Within days of the revolution, these same artists had brought their tools to Tahrir and taken to the surrounding walls. This piece, which reads 'I love my country' was, within days, printed onto t-shirts worn by volunteer youth clean up crews that repainted all of the curbs leading to Tahrir.
-
Mohammed Mahmoud Street
Mohamed Mahmoud Street leads from Tahrir into the neighborhood buffering the square from the Interior Ministry. It has continually been the scene of massive protests, and a number of franchise restaurants have had to board themselves up after being smashed in subsequent demonstrations. In the days following the removal of Mubarak, however, these walls became the most alive of any surrounding Tahrir, and painters, artists, writers, and others applied their trade. Subsequent visits to Mohamed Mahmoud document the development of the revolution itself.
-
Bab el-Louk
Falaki Square, and the Bab-el-Louk neighborhood, just minutes walk from Tahrir, served as rest and recuperation zones during the initial 18 days of the revolution. Restaurants opened their doors as makeshift hospitals, coffee shops became strategic planning areas, and apartments overlooking the area opened their doors for revolutionaries to sleep, side-by-side, on any spare floor space. Free Egypt, painted on a bus stop at Falaki Square, is part of a much larger street art presence throughout the area.
-
The ghost of Khaled Said
Khaled Said, a young man in his twenties, was dragged from a cybercafe and beaten to death by police in June 2010. The police autopsy report stated that he had suffocated while trying to swallow a bag of hashish, but photos of his gruesomely disfigured body, as well as testimony from witnesses at the cybercafe, quickly went viral and made Khaled Said the face of the Egyptian revolution. Human Rights Watch reported that the photos of his "battered and deformed face...show a fractured skull, dislocated jaw, broken nose, and numerous other signs of trauma" and suggested "strong evidence that plainclothes security officers beat him in a vicious and public manner." Subsequently, a google executive name Wael Ghoneim started the 'We are all Khaled Said' facebook page, which became wildly followed and is broadly credited as a fundamental part of the beginning of the revolution. On the first anniversary of Khaled Said's killing, protesters stormed the military line defending the Interior Ministry and spray-painted his face across the walls. By morning, all signs of this event had been painted over.
-
Egypt Youth
'Shebab Masr' means 'Egypt youth' and is painted on the wall of a side-street leading to an area of Tahrir which saw very heavy battling between revolutionaries and thugs on camel and horseback. The youth of Egypt are widely credited with driving the revolution and see themselves as the generation of the new Egypt. Their creativity, internet savvy, and optimism are complimented by many - but the removal of Mubarak himself could not have happened iif it haden't been for the massive economic pressure of national strikes by middle-aged laborers across the country.
-
Khaled Said
Khaled Said, a young man in his twenties, was dragged from a cybercafe and beaten to death by police in June 2010. The police autopsy report stated that he had suffocated while trying to swallow a bag of hashish, but photos of his gruesomely disfigured body, as well as testimony from witnesses at the cybercafe, quickly went viral and made Khaled Said the face of the Egyptian revolution. Human Rights Watch reported that the photos of his "battered and deformed face...show a fractured skull, dislocated jaw, broken nose, and numerous other signs of trauma" and suggested "strong evidence that plainclothes security officers beat him in a vicious and public manner." Subsequently, a google executive name Wael Ghoneim started the 'We are all Khaled Said' facebook page, which became wildly followed and is broadly credited as a fundamental part of the beginning of the revolution. On the first anniversary of Khaled Said's killing, protesters stormed the military line defending the Interior Ministry and spray-painted his face across the walls. By morning, all signs of this event had been painted over. This stencil reads: Is there blood in the water of your eyes? Do you forget my clothes, stained with blood?
-
Occupation: 8 July
By the 8th of July - nearly four months after the removal of Mubarak - disenfranchisement with the Supreme Council of The Armed Forces (SCAF), who had promised quick change, was growing significantly. Only one policemen charged with killing protesters during the revolution had been found guilty (in absentia) and others had been acquitted. Protesters themselves were being tried in closed military tribunals, and many in Mubarak's inner circles remained free. The Emergency Law, in place for nearly 30 years and a tool for police impunity and arbitrary arrest, remained in place despite SCAF promises that it would be repealed if demonstrators returned to their daily lives. A coalition of youth groups announced a re-occupation of Tahrir and spread the message through street art. The occupation is still ongoing.
-
El Shahid
In the days after the revolution massive stenciled portraits of those killed in th euprising began to appear in public squares across the city. Some have been removed and repainted again, while some, like this one of a 16-year-old student named Seif Mahmoud, have remained untouched.
-
The streets of Tahrir
Painters have added to the revolutionary debate in Tahrir, painting directly on to the streets.
-
Youth
Many of the street painters are young artists, some are students at local art schools.
-
Revolution Artists Union
The Revolution Artists Union have maintained a steady presence at Tahrir, roping off an area for artists to work and wall space as a gallery. The art ranges from satire to documentary and attracts large crowds.
-
Satire
The Egyptian sense of humor has been celebrated throughout the revolution, and satire has held a prominent role in public art in Tahrir. Here an artists, camped out in Tahrir for many days, adds to his roadside gallery.
-
Student Revolution
Revolutionary art hasn't been limited to Tahrir, but has appeared all over Cairo to maintain pressure on the military transitional government and push for specific changes. Here, one of the walls of the Education Ministry has become a medium for complaints and demands in the aftermath of massive student and teacher protests demanding reform.
-
Tantawi's Underwear
Field Marshall Tantawi, head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces and de facto head of the Egyptian State, was Defense Minister under Mubarak for nearly two decades. He is criticized for his anti-reform policies and is widely seen as unwilling to ultimately fulfill the populist demands of the revolution. This piece, titled, 'Tantawi's Underwear' was painted in Falaki Square, just a few minutes from Tahrir.
-
Martyrs Square
At the northern entrance to Tahrir Square, in gorgeous calligraphy, a median has been painted with the words 'Martyrs Square'. While it has been defaced more than once by counter-revolutionaries, it remains constantly tended to and is repainted regularly.
-
Martyrs Square
At the northern entrance to Tahrir Square, in gorgeous calligraphy, a median has been painted with the words 'Martyrs Square'. While it has been defaced more than once by counter-revolutionaries, it remains constantly tended to and is repainted regularly.
-
25 January
In the days immediately following the removal of Mubarak a memorial appeared in the eastern side of Tahrir Square commemorating those who had been killed during the revolution. The street around Tahrir itself was painted with a large '25 January' and flowers and photographs were left at the site. This art disappeared within days, and no permanent memorial exists.
-
Egypt's Heart
A collection of stones and broken paving slabs has been collected and serves as protection at a corner of a tented camp in Tahrir. The camp, established on July 7th, remains in place despite constant threat of invasion and removal by thugs or the police. The protesters are demanding the fulfillment of the revolutionary demands, and have pained 'Egypt's Heart' along the side of the planter where the stones have been collected.
-
Talaat Harb
An electrical box in Talaat Harb square, just up fro Tahrir, has gone through a number of variations. Initially painted with the face of Field Marshall Tantawi as a Salafi, it was painted over and repainted with a set of handcuffs wearing an Egyptian Military beret. Now this beret has been augmented by an announcement for the July 8 Tahrir reoccupation. Out of frame in the foreground is a protest in solidarity with uprisings in Suez and Alexandria.
-
I will be back soon
The wall of a public toilet in Falaki Square has, since the fall of Mubarak, been a battleground between graffiti artists and clean up crews. This wall, twice painted with massive murals of a martyr killed in the revolution, and twice painted over, now announced the July 8th Tahrir Square occupation and a handwritten note from the artist.
-
Tantawi
A demonstrator holds a stenciled image of Field Marshall Tantawi - increasingly criticized - behind bars. Minutes later the demonstrator was acosted by men and physically restrained while they destroyed his sign. Undaunted, he regained his poise and held the pieces together, one segment in each hand.
-
Anger
Thus for only one police officer has been convicted of killing protesters during the revolution. He was tried in absentia. More recently anger has flared over the acquittal and release of a number of others, and while the Prime Minister has called for the re-arrest of 300 charged with killing demonstrators, the Interior Ministry has refused this demand, further angering protesters in the square. The photograph in this picture is of a child killed during the revolution, left against a wall leading to Tahrir Square.
-
Street art in Tahrir
-
Fist
The clenched fist of resistance has appeared all over Cairo.
-
The siege
Street art in Tahrir has taken many forms, and this elaborate styrofoam model of the siege of Tahrir by counter-revolutionary forces on camelback is nearly eight feet across. The model uses an american dollar as the flag flying over the American University in Cairo - the rooftop of which was used by government snipers against the demonstrators - and the tents of revolutionaries camped out in the square itself, under the Egyptian flag. The model took about a week to build and quickly disappeared from the square after completion.
-
Union Gallery
On Mayday in Tahrir, artists set up a makeshift gallery in Tahrir celebrating union membership.
-
Unions in Tahrir
On Mayday in Tahrir, artists set up a makeshift gallery in Tahrir celebrating union membership.
-
ENJOY THE REVOLUTION
Painted at the entrance to Tahrir Square.
-
Clash
Street art has been met with celebration, skepticism, and anger. Here a piece on Zemalek Island by up-and-coming artist Ganzeer has been defaced and blacked out.
-
Zemalek Art
A good amount of street art has emerged across Zemalek, the affluent island in the middle of the Nile that hosts a major art school.
-
Flags
The rde, white and black of the Egyptian flag has appeared on nearly every surface in Cairo, from lamp posts to tissue boxes.
-
Salafi Tantawi
Field Marshall Tantawi has been accused of stunting the revolution through lack of reform and failure to act in opposition to anti-democratic groups, such as the Salafists - fundamentalist Muslims supported heavily by Saudi Arabia. Here Tantawi is depicted wearing the traditional Salafi beard.
-
Ganzeer
The explosion of street art across Cairo has been significantly advanced by an artist named Ganzeer, and his efforts to organize, through Twitter, the Mad Graffiti Weekend, during which artists took to the streets all over the city, mapping their works on a public google map. Throughout Egypt flat bread is delivered on massive palettes biked through the streets by vendors. In this piece, a vendor, representing the people of Egypt, stands off against a tank.
-
Tank and vendor
The explosion of street art across Cairo has been significantly advanced by an artist named Ganzeer, and his efforts to organize, through Twitter, the Mad Graffiti Weekend, during which artists took to the streets all over the city, mapping their works on a public google map. Throughout Egypt flat bread is delivered on massive palettes biked through the streets by vendors. In this piece, a vendor, representing the people of Egypt, stands off against a tank.
-
Tank
The explosion of street art across Cairo has been significantly advanced by an artist named Ganzeer, and his efforts to organize, through Twitter, the Mad Graffiti Weekend, during which artists took to the streets all over the city, mapping their works on a public google map. Here a massive tank towers nearly ten feet high under a bridge in downtown Cairo.
-
King of Spades
Mubarak depicted as the King of Spades on the island of Zemalek.
-
Art = Responsibility
-
Revolution Memorial
Revolutionaries rise up against the state, depicted by the eagle, in a memorial mural on Zemalek Island.
-
Zemalek
-
Breathing art
-
Checkmate
One of the first pieces of political art to emerge after the revolution was a massive chess board painted along a side street off Tahrir Square. All of the pawns are on one side of the board, and the King has been flipped over.
-
Mural of the battle
The attack on Tahrir by pro-Mubarak forces has been memorialized in a painting across boards covering the smashed windows of a Kentucky Fried Chicken in Tahrir Square.
-
#noSCAF
Each subsequent rally in Tahrir has brought with it new street art. Here artists direct people to twitter hashtag #noSCAF, Tantawi appears behind bars, and a call to action for July 8th all line the street heading to Tahrir.
-
Tear gas revolt
A man washes dishes along Mohamed Mahmoud street, leading to Tahrir. One week ago, this street was the site of heavy fighting between protesters and the police. A grafitti memorial mural of a demonstrator hurling a tear gas canister in the direction of what had been the police line appeared on the wall just hours before the July 8th reclamation of Tahrir.
-
Mogamma Occupation
The Mogamma - a massive governmental administration building on Tahrir Square, has been occupied and painted over the course of the last week.
-
Revolution first.
The Mogamma - a massive governmental administration building on Tahrir Square, has been occupied and painted over the course of the last week.
-
Timeline
A revolutionary rests against a wall of the massive government administration building bordering Tahrir Square. The building has been shut buy the demonstrators, and artists have taken to its walls. Here significant protest dates, listed as Twitter hashtags in testament to Twitters central roll in coordinating the events, coat the wall.
-
The streets of Tahrir
With each subsequent occupation of Tahrir, new art emerges in its streets.
-
Walls
Tahrir's walls have been augmented daily by new stencils.
-
April 6th movement
The april 6th youth movement is a loose party of revolutionaries who have driven the revolution from its early days. This stencil advertises its website and is present in many locations around Tahrir.
-
Tear gas = 25$
After pitched battles last week, during which police fired volley after volley of USA made tear gas on Tahrir demonstrators, graffiti has been painted all over the square exposing the money being paid to suppress demonstrations.
-
-
Untitled
