// Nile Sunset Annex // Interview // Talk & Workshop
Photo by Al Riwaq Art Space Team
Who are you and what do you do?
Nile Sunset Annex, an evolving production and dispersion outfit run by artists Taha Belal, Jenifer Evans, and Hady Aboukamar. It is an experimental art space that puts on monthly exhibitions of artists’ work in a spare room in a flat in Garden City, but also acts as an artist, publishing house, Egypt’s first public contemporary art collection, an installation team, and an author or barmaid when necessary.
What themes do you pursue?
We are smallscale, selffunded, and rely mainly on the mutual enthusiasm of all collaborators and occasionally exchanges of time and expertise. It has a focus on presenting solo shows of work that is made by hand, that physically gets in the way of the viewer, but this is not an exclusive focus. It is interested in how objects exist and how they look and are seen in Egypt. It brings an attention to detail and a knowledge about exhibition installation to these collaborations.
Has Bahrain inspired you?
We’ve only been for a few days. So far, the food is delicious, the politics is thought-provoking, the weather is conducive to intensive periods of work, and the Bahraini pearl-diving music is Hady Aboukamar’s new conversation starter.
What was the last residency you were on?
In the summer of 2013 Nile Sunset Annex was artist in residence at Austria’s Kunsthalle Exnergasse, where it put on two simultaneous exhibitions of its own work at the Kunsthalle and the Egyptian Cultural Office Vienna.
What are some new works you have lined up?
Our current exhibition involves two Vienna-based painters, Marc-Alexandre Dumoulin and Marianne Vlaschits. New projects that we’re working on include an exhibition combining older art made at or after three moments of political flux in Egypt in the 20th century with contemporary Egyptian art.
What was the worst and best advice you have ever received?
The worst advice Hady has ever received is all publicity is good publicity and the best advice is don’t speak to the press. The working man’s a sucker. The best advice is don’t drink and drive and the worst advice is disrespect your mother.
//Talk// Join us for another round of talks by our exciting resident artists! This Thursday, from 7-9pm at Al Riwaq.
Ganzeer will kick off the evening with an intro to his highly diverse work in public space, and Nile Sunset Annex / ملحق غروب على النيل, a Cairo-based artist-run organization that produces exhibitions and publications, will give a confessional, image-based talk about its past, present and future with props and music.
Look out for both of their workshops: NSA on Wednesday from 6-9pmhttps://www.facebook.com/events/644464495615507/ and Ganzeer from Sun-Tue from 6-9pm (event page TBA)!
//Workshop// This workshop teaches two different types of printing. First you will create a linocut. A linocut is a variant of the woodcut – a relief design is cut into a piece of linoleum and inked. Secondly, you will make art while destroying a 3-in-1 inkjet printer. Through experimental scanning and then pushing a printer to the very edge of its functions, you can get a surprisingly rich range of visual results. Bring a design, image, pattern or object that you would like to use in your work.
This workshop will take place on Wednesday, February 26th, from 6-9pm and is free of charge. To register, contact gallery@alriwaqartspace.com with the subject line “NSA workshop.”