A while ago, RESPECT. featured an article about graffiti as an expression of the Egyptian revolution. Almost a month later, even more artists are hitting the streets of Cairo in what is becoming a more and more organized form of rebellion.
Yesterday evening, from seven to ten p.m., artists mapped out and colored a 100-square-meter section of Tahrir Square – a location in the city that was integral to the riots that led to Hosni Mubarak‘s fall. At the event, about a dozen artists, all part of the Young Artists Coalition, worked diligently to a large piece of revolutionary graffiti.
The finished product was a beautiful, vividly colored medley of revolutionary graffiti, centered on a large representation of a dove being stabbed by a giant, bloody knife. It’s expected to be a central feature of Tahrir Square society while the sit-ins last, showing the world that “the people at Tahrir Square are peaceful artists and well-cultured people, not thugs,” according to Mostafa al-Banna, one of the project’s organizers.
“This painting is about the martyrs of the revolution,” said Banna. “They have not yet gotten their rights.” The dove, in the middle, is meant to represent their souls, as well as the soul of the revolution.
The graffiti is not only important because of what it represents, but also because it brings the revolutionaries together. Members of the Young Artist Coalition said that a crowd would gather every time the started a new piece. Although the viewers weren’t allowed to participate in the creation as they have in the past, they still watched for the entire three hours as the artists put the piece together. Many of them were vocal about how this piece in particular embodies the feelings of freedom and expression that they now feel with the revolution completed.
Nader Kadry, an Egyptian-American, expressed joy at witnessing the explosion of free expression following the revolution. “Our newly-attained freedom has unleashed an explosion of creativity, which will drive this country for many years to come,” he said.
As good graffiti generally does, this piece has motivated Cairo residents, whether they were present at the painting or not.
“[The painting] shows that the Nation of Tahrir Square is full of culture and refinement, and we want this spirit, this utopia, to spread to the outside,” said [viewer Galal] Ibrahim. “This is really our primary demand.
Via Almasryalyoum.
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2 Comments
thank you for pointing this out.
I hope this inspires similar acts around the world.