Journey Around My Living Room by Hala Elkoussy

[Hala Elkoussy explains her research into Cairo`s visual culture. Image courtesy of Medrar TV.] [Hala Elkoussy explains her research into Cairo`s visual culture. Image courtesy of Medrar TV.]

Journey Around My Living Room by Hala Elkoussy

By : Medrar TV مدرار تي في

Journey Around My Living Room 

an exhibition by Egyptian artist Hala Elkoussy

May 2013

Mashrabia Gallery, Cairo

 

This project by Hala Elkoussy borrows its title from Xavier De Maistre`s book "Journey Around My Bedroom." In the book, the author undertakes a two-week journey in his bedroom, experiencing and describing it as if seeing it for the first time. Elkoussy attempted a similar approach to rediscover her own neighborhood of Downtown Cairo. 

For five months, she walked the neighborhood with camera in hand, spontaneously capturing the ways residents and street vendors interact and reshape their surroundings. As she explains in this video interview, the visual culture of her hometown is constantly changing, mixing old with new, and the temporary with permanent fixtures. Through her exhibition of photography, objects, and paraphernalia, she attempts to engage viewers in on how she sees this environment and tries to understand it.

               [This video is produced by Medrar TV and is featured as part of a new partnership with Jadaliyya Culture.]

A Scenography Workshop by Hussein Baydoun

A Scenography workshop by Hussein Baydoun

8-16 September 2013

Falaki Theater, Cairo, Egypt

 

Hussein Baydoun is a Lebanese artist, architect, and scenographer who is known for his unique approach to set design. Baydoun frequently participates in the creation and development of performances from their early stages with the view that scenography is an essential component to the creation of theatrical work, one no less important than the script. His designs are often inspired by the performance spaces in which he works, where he creates fascinating sets from whatever is available as he challenges conventional notions about theater production, such as in his most recent performance "Alice," which was produced in collaboration with Lebanese playwright and director Sawsan Bou Khaled. In September, Baydoun returned to Cairo to lead a scenography workshop following the same vision. At the American University in Cairo`s Falaki Theater, he worked with six upcoming set designers, in addition to amateurs, on creating imaginative environments from the remnants of old sets and other discarded objects. This video highlights the vision and development of the workshop as Baydoun describes the aim of his teaching methods.  


 

      

     [This video is produced by Medrar TV and is featured as part of a new partnership with Jadaliyya Culture.]