artbahrain: Your background as a professor in fine arts and cultural productions in Egypt resulted in several books, lectures, seminars and collaboration with art institutions and other artists and intellectuals. In retrospect, what were the vital points in the development of this very special interest? 

Yasser Mongy: I think that the very vital point here is my early interest in the “Encyclopedic thinking”, and when I speak here about encyclopedic phenomena, I do not mean the referring to that famous long era of western history, in which we can find men like Plinius, Partholomeus Anglicus and Sir. Thomas Browne, or their counterparts in Arab culture; like Al-Razi, Ibn Sina and Al-Masudi, but I mean that concept of “Studium Universalis” or “Universal vigor and interest”; that state of mind with which one should pay attention for various fields of knowledge, try to make a harmonious relationship among them in the depth of his consciousness, and try to gain a framework or an “Order” from its numerous “Material”; so that he can adopt that “Order” as a tool, to build his own position on world, culture and everything.

In my case, I think it may be more obvious in the various types of writing to which I engage with; as I write fiction, critical studies, art history editions, poetry and other types of research and literature. If we have just an analytical view on the contemporary cultural scene, we will find many examples of such mentalities that involved in parallel fields of cultural activities; two of them are mega stars for me: the Egyptian Tharwat Okasha and the Italian Umberto Eco.

Cairo art scene

AB: Your activities also reach into art criticism which surveys your art scene, consciously identifying its position and shedding light on its sore spots. Can you give us an overview of the structure of the current Cairo art scene, its main concerns, trends, and the most pertinent issues?

YM: Well, I think that we cannot talk about the “real” structure of the current Cairo art scene without talking about four of its major components; those are: Art academies, Governmental/ Official art institutions, Art galleries and Art departments of foreign cultural centers.

By analyzing the relationships among those artistic entities, we can portray the features of the current Cairo art scene; the art academies still depend on the “Old Masters” manners as a major character of its way of teaching, keeping eyes on old movements and schools of art; such as: Realism, Art Deco, Expressionism, Surrealism, etc and you will find the majority of academics repeating all the time that the types of figuration in art is the “real art”, looking at Abstraction, Conceptual Art and other fields of contemporary art; as Installation Art, Video Art, Performance Art, etc, as hoaxes or as “Non-Essential” types of new phenomena in Art. Parallel to the academies are the governmental/official art institutions, such as: Fine Art Sector and the Egyptian Institution of Palaces of Culture and the Supreme Council of Culture, trying to create a kind of balance between the contemporary art scene and a type of art which numerous of academics and local critics name: “art of identity” or “Trueborn Art”; in which you can notice a combination of figuration, oriental themes, folk themes or/and decorative style of treatment. Such governmental Institutions make the up-mentioned balance with a simple strategy; which is to plan a “mixed schedule” of exhibitions, workshops, seminars, residencies, etc, in which we find the contemporary beside the conservative. On the other hand, art galleries owners don’t care what kind of art they may show for a specific artist, contemporary or conservative being his work; as long as there is a “name”, for which collectors may come and buy.

Among these local artistic entities there are the foreign cultural centers and some foreign galleries, with agendas to promote the very contemporary types of art and, in the same time, focus on some specific trends and issues inside the Egyptian artists’ experiences; especially: political art, socio-critical art and anti-taboo art.

AB: We could not help but notice that majority of Egyptian artists’ production is of political art, subversive art practice, critical art, participatory or community art projects. Do you think this means that political art is in the very focus of the scene at this moment? 

YM: For sure, and I can add that political art will continue to be the main phenomena in the inner core of the Egyptian art scene the next several years. It was obvious and clearly noticed, as an example, in the latest Egyptian Salon of Youth, to the extent that we can read a whole collective message of policy from various works of diverse styles and different artists. On the other hand, political art became the “lifeline” for different types of artists; first of them is the type of artists from the new generation, who try to explore their position inside the new bewildering circumstances and to express the dilemmas of changing.

Second type is of other privates and groups from the new and middle generations who deal with that trend as a “marketable commodity,” which guarantees very good chances to keep under focus. The same strategy of the second type can be found in the third type, that of artists from the old generation, who dream to “resurrect” the Nasser regime’s style of art, in which political subjects were wrapped with propaganda of “Nationalism” and with which they achieved very good chances to become “Agents of Expression” in art, so they dream to find in the very moment of the Egyptian revolution a new Renaissance of their golden times; thus this explains the flourishing of political and revolution themes in based on their latest experiences.

AB: In your opinion, do you think Arab Spring shaped the scene and widened the gap between artists who are eagerly trying to satisfy consumers and those who are seeking alternative, socially critical or collective, more participatory practices of art production?

YM: Yes I do, and there are many examples to prove such case; a number of “commercial artists” already tried to inject the theme of revolution and Arab Spring concept in their latest exhibitions which resulted in very poor experiences, even in treatment and/or in expression, so that caused real financial catastrophes for them and for gallery owners. On the other hand we find a recent increasing popularity of others who seek alternative art; especially Graffiti artists, who became stars and gained fame, even among segments of society who are not concerned with art.

This contradictory case caused a presence of a new phenomenon, which we can notice in a new orientation of local art galleries managing these new stars that have been recently making saleable art and organize shows for them.

23rd Salon of Youth

AB: Regarding the 23rd Salon of Youth, the annual art salon for ages of 18 to 35 which you curated, at the Opera House, do you think the exhibition space could redefine the effervescence of Cairo’s art scene? Did that give you any extra pressure, how did that make you feel?

YM: For sure it could. And let me say it could not only redefine Cairo’s art scene, but also the whole Egyptian art scene. The first observation is the noticeable increase in young artists from outside the capital because there was active participation of talented artists from other provinces in the 23rd Salon, especially from El-Minya, Alexandria, Luxor and Assiut, who achieved very impressive projects resulting in a number of awards, drawing critics and media attention. It is a “Revolution” in itself because for 22 years the prominent stars of the Salon were from Cairo and Alexandria. I think it expresses the neo-society concept of breaking Centralism and Hierarchy, and this is the reason that led me think that there will be an emergence of new stars, movements and trends very soon in the Egyptian art scene.

Other important feature of change in this Salon is the increasing awareness in the freedom of handling techniques and media, so that we noticed a real renaissance of Drawing, Printmaking, Ceramic, Sculpture and Painting. The fake old “Dualism” of “Ordinary” medias and “Contemporary” medias, which was central in the texts and speeches of many pre-25th of January critics and artists who were just engaged to Installation, Video and Performance is about to face a real threat. As many new artists improve, an imaginary wall between the two kinds has been drawn and that the only “Bet” is to have a strong and genuine concept and the ability to handle your media, whatever it is.

AB: And what about the artists’ selection, were you able to apply aspects of your own curatorial practice in such a diverse range of artists?

YM: It was a central concept of mine to curate such a mixed selection, and to challenge myself in exploring concerted conceptual and visual features with which I can portray a harmonious show. From the beginning, when I released the Salon Manifesto, I made an open theme, which I name “Your Own Way” because I want to break the traditional system of organizing that is connected with the Salon in which the curator gives the participants a specific idea to adopt as concepts for their projects.

The main reason that gave me such concept is that artists after 25th of January’s Revolution would rather create on their own than within a unified theme. I designed a curatorial plan depending on three major keys; first, the relationship between the architecture of the space and the art pieces. I had to study the architecture of “the Palace of Arts” very well in which the Salon show is arranged. As the architecture has a very sophisticated style with huge galleries and numerous corridors and extensions, it was a very suitable space to include such a diver range of art works. The real challenge was to draw the eye to every artwork and for the viewer to have a sense of continuity or guidance as they go along.

The second key of the curatorial plan was to make visual or/and conceptual “joints” of similarity and harmony amongst such different pieces of art. It helped me a lot to get a sense of continuity, assisting the viewer as he/she goes through the immense number of pieces on display and to make everything point to a general direction, from a gallery to the next.

The third major key of the curatorial plan was to break the barriers among the different fields; some curators displays one field in a separate gallery or showroom, so that you may find a “painting room”, “photography room”, etc., which for me is not an effective way to curate. So in every gallery of the Salon space, I made a mix of several fields and it led me to discover many interesting examples of correspondences among several art pieces of different artists.

AB: Of the more than 200 artworks; paintings, installations, sculptures, photography, on display, how did you define the political or social dimension of art? What were the parameters?

YM: There were two parameters, both simple and antithetical; To show a specific art piece beside, or in distance with, another which was corresponding to it, or to clear the high contrast between, or among, specific pieces by showing them beside other contradictors, even in concept or in style.

For example, in a balcony inside the palace, I showed a big painting of a Salafi face, so that the viewer is provoked by a vibrant set of eyes looking at him as he descends from the stairs, just to find himself in the face of a hanging installation of a flying room with walls painted with huge figures of police militias who are in contradiction, not only for the Salafis but also for all the societies, orders and brotherhoods of the “Political Islam” in Egypt.

Political art

AB: Is there a way to break intellectual habits that result from generations of moralizing activist art?

YM: I think that we are all witnesses to the big deterioration in the “Pedagogic” type of art which is subsequently a result of intellectual habits. It is just enough to notice the rapid increase of social acceptance of the new kinds and shapes of critical art, sarcastic art, gender art and etc, to realize that the moralizing activist art is getting attacked from every direction. On the other hand there are new habits beginning to form inside both the intellectual and social contexts as reactions to a new type of aesthetic reception.

AB: Has the appetite of the collectors been an important factor in the prosperity of the activist art, by stimulating private galleries and urging even freshly graduated students to paint?

YM: For sure, it is a pivotal factor although it may have been affected by the latest economic recession. Nowadays you’ll notice how the collecting culture throughout the Arab countries are flourishing, resulting in the increase of art galleries which encourages not only newly graduates to paint, but also encourages talented people and amateurs from a diverse range of ages and backgrounds to try their luck as professional artists.

Economy

AB: The current political and financial crisis is also affecting the art world. The uncertain direction could also offer opportunities to test new ideas. Do you have one or more specific projects in mind that have been stimulated by the ‘economy of means’?

YM: Yes indeed, there are many. The most evident examples of this kind of projects in the Cairo art scene are two; the Graffiti huge murals projects and the art groups of what is called “Art of Squares,” both appeared and flourished during and after the 25th of January’s revolution, and both depending on private initiatives or/and donations from NGOs and civil society organizations. The two mentioned artistic phenomena benefit from the famous spaces and squares in Cairo, especially Al-Tahrir Square to draw attention of both masses and media.

The Future

AB: What do you think would be the next phase in the cultural trend in the Middle East? How will the whole Middle East censorship and multiculturalism proceed from here?

YM: I think there will be an increase in the various types of critical and satirical art. By the resurgence of these types of art, we will find it truly difficult to distinguish what is “aesthetic” and what is “communicational.” Such types will benefit from every kind of public communication, such as Advertising, Social Networking, Cinema, Video Games, applications of cell phones and ipads, etc.

In that case it will be difficult to speak about censorship and will look like a desperate attempt of an ancient governmental mandate. Thus multiculturalism will show these two to be different but with compatible appearances. One of them will be maintaining the “Old” cultural type as nostalgic for an old era and the second will have a sequential appearance of artistic combinations and cultural mixtures of every taste and kind. ab