sarma

This contribution is part of the bilingual (English/Arabic) collection and publication series 'Cairography', which was initiated by HaRaKa (Egypt) and supported by Sarma (Belgium). It features in Cairography #2, also referred to as the 'Emergency Edition' (January 2021), edited by Adham Hafez, Ismail Fayed, and Myriam Van Imschoot and supported by Moussem Nomadic Arts Center in response to a year of losses, between a deadly pandemic and a series of political catastrophes. A version with an arabic introduction is available on Sarma.

For Cairography's second edition, Mona Gamil created a triptych to celebrate the identities of three women - Haneen Hossam, Sherry Hanem, and Sherry’s daughter “Zomoroda” - who, in 2020, were arrested in Egypt for “inciting debauchery” by performing on TikTok. Their offences included dancing for joy, following harmless TikTok trends, and sharing vlogs of their daily life. 

As a result of their arrest, their images have been subject to a circus of media manipulation to paint these women as agents of indecency. With this triptych, Gamil attempts to reframe these women in a positive light: as icons in the internet age.

 

Mona Gamil is an Irish/Egyptian artist who holds an M.A. from the National College of Art and Design in Dublin, where she researched applications of cyborg theory and augmented reality in a theatrical context. She also produces works as a contemporary dancer, writer, and musician.