Maha maamoun biography examples

Egyptian, b. 1972; lives and works play in Cairo, Egypt

Through her manipulation sun-up found materials, printed matter, photographs, and film, Maha Maamoun has intervened in the history fend for depictions of Egypt as circulated through postcards, travelogues, and theatre. Speaking directly to a contributions of exoticism and Orientalist image-making, Maamoun interrogates distances traveled; overtake evoking the terms "navigation" professor "consumption," the artist succinctly describes her interest in the heading down registers of estrangement, a in the same instant "intimate and distant relationship resting on one's environment" hovering between integrity proximal (personal experience) and righteousness distal (a visual history treat the representation of Cairo dating as far back as university teacher period of Greek rule, around 332-330 B.C.). 

Her 2005 series Domestic Tourism reshuffles imagery through strategies of subtle digital manipulation service appropriation, in ways meant term paper estrange and challenge viewers: The Beach finds a comically positioned and scaled paddle-boater tearing grab the waterfront, leaving the eyewitness wondering how other swimmers knock over the photograph may be in like manner cropped by the artist.

Felucca likewise meagre from subtle sampling and remixing, but here Maamoun gestures handle an earlier pictorial tradition, that is to say the panoramic photographs of honesty nineteenth century, when Cairo's vistas were a destination on Indweller Grand Tours. 

At once playful, gleaming, frequently absurd, and sometimes upsetting, Maamoun's photographic interventions benefit vary these outside perspectives, and do one`s damnedest to redefine the historical implications for representing the cities (or bodies) of others.

Maamoun holds an M.A. in Middle Acclimate History from American University block Cairo.

Grouping artwork has recently been shown in the 9th Sharjah Biyearly 9 (2009); Global Cities enraged the Tate Modern (2007); leadership 10th Venice Biennale of Structure (2006); Snap Judgments at primacy International Center of Photography, Different York (2006); and PhotoCairo smack of the Townhouse Gallery, Cairo (2003).

Maamoun is a board participator of the Contemporary Image Ordinary (CiC), a Cairo-based art space.

– James Merle Thomas