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Exhibition: A Place to Begin
Details
Wednesday, September 6 - Thursday, September 21
Margo Veillon Gallery for Modern Egyptian Art
Art Exhibition: A Place to Begin
In partnership with Shelter Art Space
A Place to Begin will open its doors to the public on Wednesday, September 6 at 7:00 pm
The Exhibition will be open daily, from 10:00 am to 9:00 pm (Closed on Fridays and the official holidays)
A Place to Begin is a creative photography exhibition presenting a solo show within the thematic “The City”
A Place to Begin showcases black and white artwork, video installations, and calligraphy.
A Place to Begin is an exhibition that showcases the artist’s vision through his journey to Humaithera. A place that affected his personal and artistic journey on all levels.
An experience that is deeply inspired by the traditions and teachings of Sufism. It relies on Sufi teachings and the writings of the most eminent poets and mystics who practiced the teachings of love and mercy.
Mahdy says “ Humaithra is located 1,000 km south of Cairo. I first visited the place in 2016 for the first time and since then I have gone there every year despite the hardships and difficulties of the road. I believe there is something in this place that makes me feel loved and safe, there, I can listen to this inner call that warms us and surrounds us with light. An inner sound that merges with those sounds scattered around one, such as the prayers’ call, the voices of praise, people cheering, the sound of the Qur’an and the flute, and all of this is mixed with the sound of serenity.”
Artist: Mohamed Mahdy
Curated by Bertan Selim
Free and open to the public
Speakers
Mohamed Mahdy
A Place to Begin is Mahdy’s first solo show in his hometown Alexandria curated by Bertan Selim (The Netherlands) and produced by Shelter Art Space (Alexandria).
Mohamed Mahdy (Egypt, 1996) is a Visual storyteller from Alexandria, Graduated from PUA for Art & Design, and is a Magnum Foundation fellow in NYC. His work concentrates on the hidden and often unseen communities in Egypt that tackle diverse cultural and social issues relevant to the context in which he works.
Recently in 2022, Mohamed was named by The Guardian newspaper as one of 5 emerging talents in photojournalism and won the Canon student development program. His last exhibition in 2021 was in Hamburger Bahnhof Museum - in Berlin as part of the "Take Me to the River" exhibition by the Goethe Institute in Munich and Prince Claus Fund in Amsterdam curated by Maya El Khalil. Recently, he exhibited in the Altonaer Museum as part of the Hamburg portfolio Review and is currently at Geo Polis Gallery as part of Fortnight of International Solidarity 2022 - Globalization, City of Brussels. He exhibited twice with the Ian Parry Scholarship in London and also at Photoville in New York. In 2018 he was named by The New York Times Lens Blog as one of 12 emerging photographers to watch.
Presently, Mahdy is undertaking two diplomas at the Danish School for Media and Journalism (DMJX) in Arhus, Denmark.
Bertan Selim
Bertan Selim (The Netherlands) is currently the Head of Fundraising and Communications at the Prince Claus Fund in Amsterdam. Before that, he was Head of Programmes at the Prince Claus Fund. In 2014 he helped set up the Arab Documentary Photography Programme (ADPP), a joint collaboration of the Prince Claus Fund, Arab Fund for Arts and Culture (AFAC), and Magnum Foundation (NYC).
Bertan Selim regularly lectures at different art academies throughout Europe related to visual storytelling and photography. Bertan is also a member of the Supervisory Board of the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts and Dokufest.
In 2020 Bertan founded the VID Foundation for Photography to support emerging visual storytellers from the Balkans with grants and mentorships.