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ll Prefoce ]X
Revolution & Freedom I
Stencils 16
lllriirriitliirl HK 22
.rriil lii,ll,,:
Story of o Murol: Tonk vs. Biker 25
'll
i:it l\iiiiiii' Muboroks ogoinst the Woll 30
The Beouty Queen of Azorito 34
The Mugommo 3B
lll 1li i iilr
El Teneen +J
Iillii llii:
il ilil iirr rlll
, I
Protest 44
itit:i;:r;lt:i1. trE
Honqo Ei Deghom
: !: i1:
Foces 5B
iitrillri{l
The Winged Elephont 65
Nos UnderGround 7l
Sod Pondo 72
Medio Liors 77
Nozeer B}
Animols B4
ZeIt 89
The Ultros oa

Egryption & Proud IOI

Freedom Pqinters r06
A.1oo Awod r r3
Cinemo Icons I2l
AmmorAbu Bokr t24
Womon Power on the Woll r33
Beouty Is o Right I41
Cross & Crescent r49
Mortyrs & Heroes r53
Kholed Soid t62
Gonzeer I65
The Lost Eyes r66
Mohomed Mohmoud Street 173
Trqnslqtions 192
Acknowledgments I94
"Iell us oboul Egypl, is there o lot of groffitl?"
I wos touringr the Middle Eost with my photo exhibition, Gozo
Groffiti, ond I often found myself stondlng ln front of on lnterested
crowd who expected o well-informed description of the street ort in
Coiro, where Illved. The lost time this hoppened wos just one doy
before 25 Jonucrry 20I I , when the Egyption Revolution begon, ond
I hod obsolutely nothing of volue to soy. To my knowledge, I lived
in one of the few groffiti-free countrles in the world. The Egyption
youth didn't write wlthout permlssion on public surfoces. The wide
spectrum of street ort indMduol togs, stencils, pieces, crnd murols

":' Commerciol colligrophy, lmbobo.

n" "Revolution of the Youih of lmbobo" (smoshing "the porlies" ond "the
Militory Council tSCAFl"), by Hosni, Coiro.
[:'J:]:i;i.":Ti:,:J:T:I',li::":;,,,.1,,',:l'.:,:?ill
biggest crties rn the r,vorld? How odcl!"
riy frK
The Egyption Revolution took ! lro rnrot rl l ry
expected',r,rcrsthecutbreokof ',".'t'rlr
r ;r r r pt ir-rr, l iclrrolly Lrrt

u1r;lrr rr' ,rilr;Llr,rl t,Lr rot'crllcr

vruz
withthe Revolution The Egyptlcrr pcoplr r:r lr l or lrrrr Jortt, brecrd,
ctnd sociol justice, dcrnonds llrrrL r,,wly rtl, lr,'rl 'rlrrrllilir;l:;'trcrrr:,
IdEAtr
lcrted into stencils onci droi'rlrrrlr; ltr I :1,,', ,l lrl:,' .' r liro tn llrcr
streets oll over Egypt Arrcl jI wrlttt' I r( r]t r,1 ;,11,'tL()lr)Cll()ri; ()rl()
ondcrholf yecrrsloter, lltcr;ttco ,rrl,,l ll, 1ylrl i:rrr I r1 .,,vitttlcrtrdhrrl;
cought the crtlentron ol llrr:orrlitt ,, i) t Pilgrimoge pointings for Hoi Forroi, Old
Gourno villoge, Luxor
] believel hl.LrnorL l-,1 tttlr; lt,,tt ttl' I I , I 11 I (l lrt'.i. tt stlotlg Commerciol colligrophy, lnrbobo.
need to conrrrnrrLicrl o rrrrrl L,'ll r,\ r, r ,,J r ,.rl,,t ,1. /,'i'i,s//l clrrr The writing on this house wos done prior
1o the 201 I revolution ond cloims "70 Million
ltere/ Durirtcltttyl(tri('(ll( lt i,r Llr:r1,,,'l r, Lt ,,1rt7'lr".r'oll 9lo11itl Yeses for President Muborok " lmbobo.
hcrd beerr ro iinritr,, l r,11 ,rmr'i,', r r, I L ,rL '' rlLi rrlrrrrrl pcrinting

crctr.rcrllylrctcl ,rr rrrrr,, l lr,' ,'rt t, lllr, ' ,' r ,r, ll,'v() ttLi()trtcJypt, but
c,rl:;othcrtlltit;'.,,,ry,r),ltr,ri ,,t'^r ,lt, rl: l,,,rL Lt rrrllteritoget,
tn lcrct, r'ottl,l l)()(t:il L, ri l ,1 r, r ,, 1lr, ,,t Li'tr orlo:;t grollitr
witLrrnils Irltrl,'rr; ,,, l:,1r, \/!, rllr,li ,, ,,,.,,'t,', I rLlrr'lrlylrl clrtdescrt
might br. r ; (r (l (r:; ll,l,tll){1,,, 1

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 \Thon u-;e iook ur gro[[ ti rn ilris -;ir]er s--nse, l's olr',to;s thot tl-'
Er,ryoticrri people trr--ver tr:crlly .';lopped expresr;ing thoms-'lves by
cr[stic meorrij thcrt ccrn row bo chcrcrct-ottzed crs 'grcrlliti' StclrtiLrg
rri preh stcr,r: [mcl;, -,-,'horr giruffes ond clrlphortts ,-.ere broL,ght to
111o by simplo strokes orr o dcsert rock, tlie Eclyptrons
cr co,.rple oJ
crnbor lri:ct orr on or t joulney tircrt hcr; ieJt rts mor k urLlrl our tirne ,AJ1
k rds o1 grcr1fi11, vcrliing lrom:r mpler r:cro-','ling ic-, skillul colligrophy
crrLd colorful poirrtings, .ippoor in crnciont tornbs ond tcrnplt:s,
(loptli: r:h;Lc tes, rrnd orL 1he ,--rrlls ol l'1;s1lnr-;llcrl1c iiot;tes liiut hcrve
bcen c1ocorc.rtc--d with Hcrjj pcrinlings, celebrcrtinq lhc pllgrirrroge lo
Mecccr And lr,-foro crdv--rtrsrnq orllbocl'ds-,vcLe erteclecl rn the citios,
l'-.--cg irorlnr()n 1.r hira lrrL crtlr;t to,,.,ri*e c rLd crcote u couttrLerciol
l;loqcrr clrreclIy on he wrrl], oncl mony of them r;till rerncrrn
] tr c "-r--lecl to cr I .he nrr-rlor Ec1-r-p,r(In
L alr;:r ,n :eorclt of Re-":ol;trLrrt
c1rcrffltl I tolkcd to p--opk: frorrL crli r.;enercrtions, crnd most o{ t}i--rn
erxpre:;r;ed tlLerr I ILng lrr tlrc rrew stteo ort They diort't frnd il
a
:L:cnqr Aftor ol1, ,t rs ;r'obcrblir jur;1 c rlr-,der. exprcssiorr cf o1d

Erlyptrcrrr woys ol r:ommrnicotjon: I1 's crll wrrltcrr on tlrc-'wcrll

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Stencil groffiti, Mohondesin
J Cornmerciol pointing on Tohlir Sireel, Coiro
Honds dipped in blood, from the lslomic feost oF Eid ol Adho, Moodi
 EU IU,T,i r,

The 25 Jonuory tgyplion Revolulion opened the {loodgotes for o wove o{

street ort. In the beginning it wosn't cleor how strong this new
expression would be, but by the summer of 201 I the constont flow
of groffiti hod cought the ottentlon of the medio, ond people storted
to tolk obout the wolls of Egypt being under crn "crrt ottock."
Groffltl wos rore before the revolution. Occoslonol writings ond
drowings oppeored on the wolls of Egypt, but were quickly removed.
Protest ort wos o mission impossible under Muborok's regime,
where the Minlstry of Culture controlled o1l public expression. The
eighteen dcrys of moss revolts thot finolly toppled the stognont regime
of President Hosnl Muborok become on emotionol eorthquoke for
I the country. Decodes of oppression ond despoir suddenly were
,-, turned into optlmism, o newbornvitolity ond energy, ollowing people
to explore new freedoms-including the right to moke ort freely.

"i Celebroting the revolution in poeiry, Minyo: "The dreom come bock,
wiihout worning." (For the tronslotion, see poge 192.)
Detoil of o murol by students ot the Fine Arts Acodemy, Zomolek.
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"Think. Think. Think. No one will thinl< {or (
you." Nosr City.
Heodless poliiicions in the honds of o militory
puppeteer, by Ahmed El Mosry, Ahmed Abdolloh,
Monio, ond KlM, corner of Mohomed
Soil<o
Mohmoud Sireei ond Tohrir Squore, Coiro.
"The cry of o people: Revolution," Mohomed
Mohmoud Streei, Coiro.

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Sociol r-nedio ore cln irrrpo.tont protesl lool itAurol c'l Alexorrrlrio,

A cry for freedor.n in i\4inYo ;' i:,

"Our revolution will be 66rnpleted," l'y l(lM, Mohor-l,led Mchmoud

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& : Resisting the government Groffitied borricodes on

Mohommed Mohr.lroud Street
"l hope to be o rnorlyr, whot do you hope 1o be?" by
Hosni ol the corner of Mohomed Mohr-rroud Street ond
Tohrir Squore, Coiro.
Deoth, in the forrrr of the militory, cloirns his victims,
Tohrir Squcrre
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, , rr LrI lre lions on Qosi- oi-Nil Bridge, Coiro. "Wnl<e L]D, Egyp'i! "Hii i.rs urith bullets, hii rs wifh fighier-plcnes, you wi//
,,, ,,;ry," "Sco{, Sccrf roised the price of oil crnd sugor," "We ore ieove," by Hosli, corner of Mohr:rned i\4cihn'ouci Streei ond
I , llrrrrrcrclon!" "No io SCAF in order noi 1o lose the revolution," Ichrir Squcre, Coiro
, , llre Squore," "God, let your slove be viciorious " "Freedcn-r," Gcr-dei- f itY, Ccriro

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"Preserve Egypl's sionding
/ And v're will l<eep the old
promise / Egypt is more honest
thon time," song by Sheil<h
lmom, murol by students ot the ','.111iit,".
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Fine Arts Acodenry, Zomolel<
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Pointing by Miro Slrilrcrrlerlr,

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Fine Arls Acoderly, 1-orIrrrlllr

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"Steodfost," Coiro.
"Stoy with ihe revolution!" Alexondrio.
"Peoce{u1," Coiro
Stencils on o bolcony in MinYo.
"The people's porlioment from the blood of the
people," Alexondrio.
m

Oppoiie poge:
"Where ore my righls?" by
Hossom Honi Shukrolloh ond
Mohommed el Moshir, Coiro.
"Freedom, 25 Jonuory
2O12," Coiro.
"l om the broin ond you
ore the rnuscles," Mohomed
Mohmoud Streel, Coiro

"People's revolulion, people's

outhority. Tronsfer oulhority 1o the
porlicrment, 25 Jonuory 2012."
Tohrir Squore
"No porl<ing except oi the
notion's borders," Coiro
"The revolution is not o mono-
poly," Luxor (for the full tronslolion,
see poge I 92)

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Posiers ond stencil for Hozem

Abu lsr-rroil's obortive presidentiol
compcrign, with his slogon "We will
live o dignified life," Monsouro.
"Minirnum woges for people who
live in lorrbs ond limited woges for
people who live in poloces," logo o{
the Anorchists, Coiro.
Logo of Noor, ihe Solofist porty,
Luxo r
6 April Movement, Tohrir Squore
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"Every yeor Egypt is going {or-
word with us," logo of Mohommed
ElBorodei, Coiro ii
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hod never been exposed to groffiti before the revolution.

Mosl Egyplions

When people qrrived in vost numbers ot Tohrir Squore to celebrote

the fo1l of Muborok, mony osked groffiti ortist HK why he wonted to
defoce the wolis. In response, he pointed: "I'm not here to destroy.
My intentions ore good." HK is one of Coiro's gro{fiti pioneers. The
young engineer wos the first groffiti ortist to moke his mork on the
Mugommo, Egypt's center of bureoucrocy, towering of the south
end of Tohrir Squore. The Squore become q second home for HK
during the 25 Jonuory Revolution. "All of us who stoyed ot the Squore
mqde ourselves use{ul during the revolution; there were people
guording the entronces, toking core of the wounded, collecting the
gorboge, ond I dld whot I'm good ot: pointing." HK wosn't totolly new
to groffiti. Alreody in 2009 he hod rnritten on o Coiro woll: "Down with
Muborok-The Corruptl" It wos o scory experience; two ormored
police vons orrived ot the scene, blocked the street from both ends,
ond interrogoted people obout whether they knew who the guilty
person wos. HK monoged to get owoy. By the next doy the writing
on the woll wos covered with white point. A recurrent messoge in
'' HK's work is soJom, 'peGce.' This word hos o speciol meoning to HK.
"l om the people," Dokki.
The plocords on the woll of the Mugommo on Tohrir "I'm thinking obout the peoce thot exists when you don't hqve to
Squore soy, righi io left: "No to horossmeni," "No to SCAF,"
struggle so hord to survive, when the poveriy thot ki11s your hoppiness
"No lo negotivity," "No io thievery," "No lo violence," "No
to betroyol." hos been erosed, ond you con ollow yoursell to Iully enjoy life."
;" "A squore thot speoks the truth, thol olwoys soys No
to lhe oppressor," Zomolek. The phrose is from o song by
Aido ol-Ayubi/Coirokee. The pointing shows o plon of
Tohrir Squore, with the proteslers' tents within the circle. lt
wos done in colloborotion with o femole colleogue whose
signoture is olso HK; ihus together they become HK2.
';".rl fhree messoges ot the bock of the Mugommo during
the revolulion: "We ore oll Kholed Soid," "Revolution," ond
"25 Jonuory-O my beoutiful countryl" Blue, red ond white
were the only colors HK could offord.

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It oll storted in lote Moy 20ll , when there wos o first coll for o "Mod Grolfitj
Weekend." Street ortists were brought together to collectively pro-
duce gro{fiti ocross Colro. Among the "Mod Groffiti" orgonizers
wos Gonzeer, o grophic designer who wos oiso one of the moln
ortists behind the lorge-scole stenciled piece on the qbutment oj
the Sixth oJ October Bridge in Zomolek. The originol work, here
nomed "Tqnk versus Biker," portroyed o life-sized tonk olmlng its
connon ot o boy on o blcycle corrying o troy of 'oish bctlctdi, or locql
breod, the stople {ood of most Egyptions ond therefore symbolic of
the doily struggle to moke ends meet. Another groffiti ortist, Sod
Pondo, odded his logo to the piece. "Tonk versus Biker" quickly
become o well-known morker oJ the new Egyption groffiti.
AJter the "Mospero Mossocre" of October 201 I, when more thon
twenty-five Christion Eglptions protesting the destruction of q church
were killed by the militory, groffiti ortist Kholed, olso known os the
Winged Elephont, orrived ot the woll ond odded imoges of people
being crushed by the tonk-just os it hod hoppened in reol life.

The oriqinol murol from Moy 2011 by Gonzeer, Sod Pondo, ond friends
 Supporters o{ the ormy, colling themselves the Bodr Bottolion,
didn't like Kholed's oddition, ond chonged the murcrl into o pro-
crrmy piece.
But not for long. Soon Kholed wos bock with his point ond brushes
ond turned most of the woll next to the tonk into o gicrnt monster-
soldier devouring cr femole protester. The Mono Liso Bottolion, cre-
oted in response to the Bodr Bottollon, odded o set of figures, omong
them the Russion communist Lenin Loter Nozeer odded hls sign
"Tohrir is your oddress" being crushed by the tonk. The wltness to
oll of this, the Sod Pondo-whot hoppened to him? He disoppeored
in the process ond is now hidden under loyers of polnt.

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"ll' Protesiers, in Vendetio mosks, hove iojned the Biker ond Sod Pondo
h The Tonk crushing protesters, on oddiiion lo ihe murol by Winged Elephont ofter the Mospero Mossocre
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cilrcj lhe people cre onc rcrl(1, 2O lrrrrLr,r r

2012 Tre SCAF suppo lr:ts lre c rr--lr (L(i,,
Wirgleci Elephcrrt willr cr rililcrry rro r;tr, rr l
\ ar =' it' o onge nrix o{ [igures rn cr ye low cloutl Ly
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iA, llre Morc L scr Botlcrlio r: thr: Eglyrlicr r :o c ,

Suleinrcrr l(hcrler florkecl by Le ri r, w rle bclo'r

ore [gypficrn oclress Mcriy Monib ond Fie c]
Mci s rcrL Tc rlcuzi, re e riciu ecl c,s cr "co u rl
H*:"" llovvr:'," c ccorcli rg lo lhr: orlisls Moocly crrcl
Booqy in thc Bollo ion The blue-. brcr synrbo
1I' lo cr fe rol-- protesle iv ro \vcls rcrclly beclel
It
lry llre rrilitcr y ci Tcrlri Squrr e crrcl ollr--r
icorrs wcre crddcd lo llrc lrurcrl J:y Bohicr
&il" S relrcrb, crnc Nc ze.r s .rgo "Tc rr is you
-[lre
I c6lql 655" is r -u: rec !-.y llre l crrl< gree r
rronsler :,oiclie, c/evr,rurirrg ci ferrcle prolestc:r
., I Lry [/
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ob il;--r, ,rcl by SCAI :ir r rc lcrs

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At the beginning of the Egyption uprislng grcrffltl ortists hcrd countless
numbers of Muborok poriroits from whlch to moke their stencils.
For thlrty yeors presldent Hosnl Mubcrrok mcrde sure 'hls' people
would never forget hlm The omnlpresent Muborcrk looked down ot
people {rom gicrnt posters in the streets, hls fromed portrclit hung
from the wolls of offices, schools, crnd cofes, crnd reoders of the
stote owned press met hls foce dcxily on the front poges.
Groffltl stencils oJ Hosni Muborok show on orrogont mon, defyrng
the people's wrll to the bitter end Muborok, who rose to presldentiol
power crfter the ossosslnotlon of Anwcrr Sodot in 1981, become one
of the longest serving rulers in Egypt's modern history. He ls morrled
to Suzonne Muborok, on Egypticrn version of o well pollshed Flrst
Lcrdy of the United Stotes At the tlme of writing, her husbond, who ls
thirteen yeors her senlor, is seruing the second month of o twenty-
flve yecrr prison sentence. The toppled presldent stood occused of
the killlngs ol hundreds of protesters ond mossive corruptlon, shorlngr
the lotter chorge with hls sons. Muborcrk is wrdely expected to oppeol
the verdict. The cxmossed weolth of the {ormer ruling fomily of Egypt
is estimoted to be somewhere in the reglon of $70 billion.

Suzonne Muborok, wife of ex-presideni Hosni Muborok, depicied os

o serpent, by Ammor Abu Bokr Mohomed Mohmoud Streei, Coiro
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Ayo Torek, qlso knovrn qs the "Beouty Queen of Azoritq, " is the midwife of modern
groffiti in Egrypt. But twentytwo-yeor-old Ayo, who wos born ond still is bosed in
Alexondrio, doesn't wont to be lobeled o groffiti ortist. "l'm o pointer ond o murolist,
or just coll me o creotive professionol, becouse I do lots of different things"' Long
before the revolution ond todoy's vibront groffiti scene Ayo ond o group of friends
begon to moke stencils ond drcrwings on the wolls o{ Alexondriq. "I took my ort to
the streets ond creoted my owr] outdoor golIery becouse I wos desperqte to show
my work outside the Foculty of Fine futs."
Meeting people directlyin the open ond seeing howtheyopprooched her ortwork
gove Ayo o greot kick. "l olso got o lot of sotisfoction from the feeling thot I wos totolly
{ree: thot nobody could control me in the sireet, ploce restrictions on or censor my ort."
Ayo wonted to shqre her experiences qnd invited people to join her groffiti
workshops. But only one person opplied. "Con you believe thot? If it hod been
todoy, the closs would hove been full-more thon fulil"
Ayo, who is o step oheod of her contemporories most of the time, Jelt she hod
olreody left her "rebellious phose" when the Egqption Revolution storted in lonuory
2011. "I joined the protests, but I felt like o zombie," soys Ayo. "l hod olreody moved
on to o new phose, I wos reody for new chollenges."
Today Ayo soys she wonts to "connect the dots" os qn ortist. Her lnspirotionol
dots belong to o brood spectrum where eost meets west: Arobic colligrrophy, pop ort,
Persion miniotures, phoroonic ort, ond not leost, clnemo posters by her grondfother
of the I960stothe I980s. "l'mtoiollyinspiredbyhiswork.Wehcrvethesqmebrush."

ft Poster by Hosson lbrohim, Ayo's grondfother

tc. & &
Eorly works on the woll outside Hosion lbrohim's old
studio in Alexondrio (below the window: "The revoluiion").
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 A cinemo poster by Ayo Torel< iurned inlo o murol,
Alexondrio

& & Sl<oter ond ihe Seo Snol<e, o collective worl<

by Ayo Torek, Yozoon el Zo'bi ond ARTest, Alexondrio.

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,I'AHRIIT. FII,M GLINIC hescnt

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looks like the perfect setting for o film crdcrptotion o{
The Mugommo

George Orwcll's ]984. Thls towering building ot the south end of

Tohrir Squorc hos been the center of Egypt's extensive bureoucrcrcy
since lhe eorly 1950s. An Egygtion joke soys thcrt one million people
enter the lorlress like building doiIy, but only 990,000 leove; lt ls q
feored ploce wlrere the visltor eosily gets losi in o myriod of holls ond
offlces, with fcw signs or lobels on the doors to guide you. Mugamma,
roughly tronsloted, meons 'collection' or 'o coming together of thlngs.'
The combinotion o{ this groy colossus ond colorful groffiti would
hcnre been unlhinkoble before the revolution. But the Eglptlon grofflti
hos proven itself to be unstoppoble in the post-revolutionory
process. Since 25 lonuory 201 I groffiti ortists hcrve conquered meter
ofter meter of the Mugcrmmo's concrete wolls ond turned its lower,
reochoble ports into o huge open-oir gollery of politicol drowings
ond messoges. It's on ever-chonging goIIery. The groffiti ortists ore
continuously provided with new convoses by the quthorlties, who
keep sending out cleoning potrols to whitewosh the wolls.

l' "Liors" ond the Mugommo.

38
 {
u

"Down with SCAF

ond its thieves," by Hosni
"Know thy enemyi
Homdy Bodeen."
"People who mol<e
holf o revolution will be
\ screwed," by Hosni.
"We ore bocl< "
On the porlroits of
morlyrs: "No reconcili-
otion," by Eyod Orobi
 'ii

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"Mlr,:,rr,;,' rLrllr( l lr,rrrr llte People of Egypl "No to militory rule "
lo fi(-Al : lr rtvr ," lry 11,,, ri Murol by Hosni
"Yorr wrll rr,, lrl ,,rr lvolLrlLotr," by Hosni

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40
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Super Girl El Tenecrr rnode tlris stencil ofter the

incident ot Tohrir Squote whetr c wolron wos beqten
ond hod her clothes torn off by lhe militory, showing d
her blue bro. The letter tho' orr her chest stonds 44
lor lhowro-revoluliorr The wrilirrg below soys: "li
continues." Roxy Squore, Heliopolis, Coiro.
Christion ond Muslirn urriiy will l<r'rocl< out ihe
power o{ ihe ormed {orces, Downtown Coiro, 20.1 2.
,. A conversotion b,etween two necl<ties: "Domn-"
Zomolek, Coiro. it
/,
'1
 Et ilElft;EJrl
lgyplions need lo be shoken up. E] Teneen, 'the Drogon', belleves thot
street ortists ore importont in shoking up o conservotive society.
El Teneen did his first groffiti ort on 26 Jonuory, the second doy of
the revolution. "It wos the first doy we octuolly took control o{ the
Squore. There wos o lorge portroit of Muborok, ond Gonzeer
sproyed 'Down wlth Muborok' on it, something I hod olwoys
wonted to do; ond ofter thot we continued to put our mork on
the wolls oround the Squore. The protesters hodn't seen grof{itl
before; the ideo of writing something in o public spoce wos new,
but they liked it."
Looking bock on o yeor during which groffiti sprecrd like wildfire
in Egypt, El Teneen is surprised thot he ond his friends dldn't use
groffiti os o meons of protest before the populor uprising. "Muborok
wos literolly in our fcrces, looking down of us from everl'where We
could ot leost hove thrown o bucket of point ot his portroit, done
something, but no. There wos o lot of despoir before the revolu-
tion, especiolly omong ortists. Mony hod lost their foith, ond felt it
didn't motter ony longer whot you dld." Llke mony other groffiti
ortists El Teneen hos chosen to remoin ononymous, not becouse
he believes there is much reol donger in bringing out politicol
messoges todoy, but becouse he hopes thot the revolution will
move on so thot he con stort tockling the sociol issues thot ore
reolly importont to him: sex crnd religlon. El Teneen describes
Egypt's society os o highly conservotive one in which people's lives
+ Eurllria lho clown wos o well-known figure on Egyption W for children crre qt the some time highly connected crnd visible to ol1. "lt's prob-
Hig efttnrllrcl line wos: "l con't foce this situotion." Downtown Coiro.
I Ihc kirrg lros follen. El Teneen copied the ideo from on unknown lemotlc to stond out. If you were to sGy you don't believe in God, for
laurrc l)owrrlown Coiro. exomple, you would definltely need to protect your identity."

*
;;-*
PR[},T E$,7

"No io militory rule," "Ptcsctvt: llrrr L llyllliirrr

identity," Luxor.
"fu"or. o suit, or weot llorcts il"' r'lrll L)owrr
with militory rule " ln Seplctrrlrr:r
'/0I l, I rclrl Mcrrshol

Fine Arts, Luxor

Tonlowi's uttdtlturt:''t by A'llrrrrrr llcrl<ry

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 "Government, feor us," Downtown Coiro.
"Slril<e I 1 Februory " Field Morshol Tonlowi
soys: "All the Egyption people should porticipcrte,"
Downtown Coiro.
Egyption cot of resistonce, by Gonzeer, Dol<l<i
"Wotch out for the porties of the fuioul [old
regime]," Luxor.
ln red: "Don't elect the blocl< circle: thief, ignoronl,
bully, mol<es promises: Notionol ty." In green:
"Elect the white circle: irustworth ducoied honest,
octs on promises: Egyption " 6 April Movement, Luxor
Tohrir Squore
"silence is nol for us," Tohrir Squore
"All the militory ore thieves," Downtown Coiro
"Weor we're going to the streei," Dol<l<i'

tuh,r&illEfij :1.

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"GIory io the moriyrs," Downlown Coiro

"Killing couses deoth ," Zomolel<
"Whot's nexi?" Dol<l<i A fenrole prolester
wos bruto ly beoien by lhe mi itory in Tolrrir
Squcrre in Decenrber 201 l She wos d ogged
on the ground wil r lre oboyo ripped opcn for
evcrybody io see hcr noked torso ond blue bro
lmoges o{ the incidenl were widely spreod ond
the 'blue bro girl' become o symbol of resislonce
crgcinsl mililory rulc

t&A fi ,#4,;;';' str

"We hoven't forclolten Tcrhrir," Moodi
"Your gos liglris up sroel, go dowr fio iire
eell," Minycr
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"Sluclcnls ol rlr lr:s, " t t toctt r i rrcl ig r.roro nt

tlulf
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studcnis, Zcrr r rc rlt:k

"Dor,;, " ." D,'w',1, iw | ( , rl o
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Fisl oI Soliclorily lry l(cizr:r, Zcrrrrolel<, Coiro.

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"No scrfe cxil," Dowrrlowrr Cctito
"No lo rrrililcry rulc," "llrt-- pcople ore the
red line," Tolrrir Srltrcrrc
tl't
"The l<inq o[]lrc jurrtllc ricles o torrl< " This
stencil by El Tctrccrr slrows llcrslrot ol Asod os
Hiiler (cr.sod is 'liorr' irr Ar crlti<, lrr-'trce kirrg of the
iungle). A new scnsc ol irrlcttroliotrol solidority
sweeps over lltc Miclcllc Eosl; tlrr: struggle for
freedom ond socicrl iu:;lice lrcrs rro borders xe l,l
Opposile pog,Jc: t ! tr,
"Resisl the govt-'rtrtrrcrrl," Cctit o (

"Revolution ogoin Cotlt-'1o Tcrlrrir ,20 April,"

Coiro
"The street is ours ond llre woll belorrgs to J:
us, you bcrstords," Tohrir Squore
"Down with gong rule," Coiro

50
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"Workers of Egypt, where ore you?" Downtown !.
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Coiro t
"l(ill me: my murder will never bring your notion f
bock" (from "Ode of the Squore," by the fomous poet
Abd ol-Rohmon ol-Abnoudi), Dokki
' ,;,r11'"*' ..11"'il,, 1'rr)'
ji"'.iir C P,:
"Bosem's blood is on your honds" (ond the nomes
lii4ti 41 "u'"' 4t-jr,
of 22 olher mortyrs), Zomolel<, Coiro. i1,utz
*riLiix 4t utn
"Remember them," Sudon Slreet, Coiro. .6.Juli1 g!,u'r
rili1 j,u,:
:ri-ii1 j ,u,. s-ili1 j,vl'
,r'r.ir 3i ura Jri=ji1 4i ,ura
.roil.iir :5d6ii1 ,u,a
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llrrrruo is on [gyplion poinler who lives ond works in both Coiro

rrr,l ll,,r lin. In Februory 2012 she joined her ortlst frlends
i\ r r r r rr r Abu Bokr ond Aloo Awod in Coiro ond ossisted W4
rlr, r r l,r severol weeks with the remembronce murol for
tlr, 'i, lirns of the "Port Sold Mossocre" on Muhommod
*t=
I l, rlrrrrrrrl Street in downtown Coiro. "lwonted to be port
I llr,, ongoing revolutlon ond I wcrs interested in their
, , ,ll, rl ,, rrotion, in how to connect Ammcrr's portroits of the
-rl rl
',, r lyrii with AJoo's pointlngs, inspired by our heritoge,"
r ,':r I lr r nocr, who odded the decorotlve ond 'connecting'

, i, 11q, ,1111; to the murol. When the murol wos completed,

ll, rrr, r, r lound on empty spoce on Muhommod Mohmud
, I r,,,,l wl rere she begon to point o work of her ou.,n, entitled
| ','r , rr r rirl of Crisis." The ideo for the murol wos developed
rlr',r l lrrnoo reod in o newspoper thoi on the doy of the
I rli,rlontory elections thot followed the revolution,
.
' 'r r,
,r woited in o long line to fill their empty cooking-gos
, rrrrrrl.r;, while of the some time no one stood in line to

r I II rcir vote. Honoo's work is o testimony to the struggle

, ilrL rj, )rily of Egyptions foce on o doilybcrsis ond sofor
rl ,, r , .volLrtion hos not fulfllled ony of their demonds for

I r , ,, r, I r rrrd soclol justice.

I tr.lrril of ihe murol "Pyromid of Crisis," Mohomed

l \,rlrrrroud Slreet, Coiro.
R Deioils from two murols on Mohomed Mohmoud
',lrlll, (.rrito
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Porl o{ the rnural "PYromid

o{ Crisis " Egypt hos suf{ered
severol crises relcted to short ...,'.
oges of cooking gos over recenl
yeors, one of r-lronY hordshiPs
{or its struggling PeoPle
& The ortist hos oddeci
:t;tl newspoper clippirrgs io ii'e
rnurol One heodline scrYs:
"One yeor since the Revolution "
A rreiied v\iomon cotries o g,ls
conisier wiih ihe word "chonge"
in red lellers

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"Dovrn, dorvn vrith nr lilcry rule," MohcLnred Mcrhnroud Sl r,,,

Coiro
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Moro Liscr i"b--ccruse s're is the source of on"), by tlre Morrrr
Bottolion, Zcr rolel<
Grdr Do,.,o^'oo
Molronr red ElBorcrdei Alexorrdr icL
Mcr yo r So elr, singcr of llrc revolutio r Zo role<

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 Opposile poge:
"Do the right thing," sterrcil ol
<rclor Ghosson Molcrr (the line i:;
from one of his movies), Mcrodi
Hobib ol Adly, the former
Egypiion minister of interior, olso
os'the buicher,' Luxor"
''",',1;;ii:::'!:t:: l<nown
V for Vendello mosl<s, Zomolel<
"The idol hos follen," Alexondrio

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"l om St Vincent" (the Americon
singer), by Amr Gomol, Zomolel<
Screoming hond by Zool<,
Zomolel<
"Down with l(hedive lsmoil,"
Alexondrio.
Solofist, Mohomed Mohmoud
Street, Coiro.
Foce on o woll in Foggolo, Coiro

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"Be hoppy," by Shonk, Roxy Squore, Heliopolis

Moryom Soleh, the singer, Zomolel<
Field Morshol Tonlowi ond Mohorned Bodie,
Supreme Guide of ihe Muslim Brotherhood, Qosr
trl o -Nil Slreei, Coiro

Opposiie poge:
. rl ' '.
; r$li' Horned Toniowi, Zomolek.
'-"
Beorded foce olongside election posters for
i ,," d, .ri.

t ihe Shuro Council, Moodi.

A row of foces copied {rom "The Giont" by
Shepord Foirey, Morghoni Bridge, Heliopolis

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 WLUTTU, E[EP[lAil,T

Kholed, olso known os the Winged tlephonl, ls o twenty-three-yeor-o1d comic

ortist. Kholed mode his first politicol groffiti in November 201l, during
the first free Eg-yption porliomentory elections. "l wonted to express
I dt my opinion on the Muslim Brotherhood, so I rnrote on their posters:
"They ore selling ony'thing by uslng Islom ond the nome of God."
Comics ond gnolflti hove q lot in common. Both ore ort forms produced
by ortists who stoy in tune with the people, ore quick to pick up whot's
hcrppening oround them, ond hcrve the tolent to turn it into o messoge,
often delivered $rlth o humorous twist. Kholed's groffiti con eosily be
reod os o series of comic strips, with huge imoges to followwhiie you
wolk olong o woll. He is os comfortcrble moking groffiti on his ov,rr os
he ls within o teom, ond doesn't core if the group consists of o mix of
professionol ond non professionol ortists. "It's eosy to become o
groffiti ortlst todoy," soys Kholed. "l wouldn't coll o guy who copies
hls stencils from the Internet on 'qrtist.' But this is not the time to dif-
ferentiote between crrtists ond non-ortists, or {or thot motter, drowing
or stenciling. We ore still in o revolution, ond oll o{ us crre needed out
there in the streets. Our job ls to tell the truth obout whot's hoppening."

, "The murol shows severol moments from the revolution. I wont us to

memorize those moments," soys Winged Elephont. The writing obove ihe
mon soys: "The person whose foce you forgot."

Fol/owing poges:
ti;, "tNiIh o smile, he reollywill ...leove."
I "l soy: Cousin . . . fidelity.''
r,, "The person who wos drinking ond osked me: Wont some?"
tll.': "fhe person who didn't show up in the progrom but whose voice wos
in the heort oi the cry."
', "When they storted shooling."

65
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W
U 1{IIERERICIiU ilD
iVas meons 'people' in Arobir. As soon qs the Egyption revoiution rem
Muborok from power, the groffiti teom Nqs UnderGround sow the
Iight of doy. The moin body of the group consists of two young men
ond o womon-q student, o jobless university groduote, ond o
phormocist-whose oim is to rqise politicoJ orMoreness qmong
fellow Egyptions. They begon moking groffiti becquse lnobcidy
listened," referring to the stote mediq, which the group view os
either liors or incompetent to oddress the reql issues: freedom,
breod, ond sociql justice. Nos UnderGround is on Focebook ond
Twitter, but believes there is no better sociol medium thon the wolls.
"Groffiti is on inexpensive woy to reoch o lot of people. Here we con
olso reoch oll kinds of sociol groups; we hqve dif{erent messoges
for different oreos."
Nos UnderGround distinguishes itself by moking stencils thot
ore both meoningful ond eye-cotching, like the 'shoe stencil,'which
shows the sole of q shoe with the word 'SCAF' (short {or 'Supreme
Council of the Armed Forces'). They believe thot groffiti, besides
corrying o politicol messiige, should olso be done well qnd be nice
to look qt. Nos UnderGround wqnt to continue developing the ort of
groffiti. Todoy, they cooperote with young poets to turn their poems
into groffiti stencils. The dreom is to estoblish o groffiti school. "lf you
hcrve q possion for groffiti-or ony strong interest for thot mqtter
it's importont to explore it to the {ullest."

Actor Towfiq ol-Deqn: "Nothing is sweeter lhon honor," Downlown Coiro.

"No freedom is for free," Downtown Coiro.
"l'm no longer ofroid of deoth," lhe Mugommo, Tohrir Squore.
 SAD PrAil,DA
A pudgy pondo wcrtchlng people in the street become the tolk of young
Coirenes in the months ofter the 25 Jonuory Revolution. Whot is o
pondo doing on the wolls? Why is he so sod?
"l don't reo11y see ony pollticol messoge in whot I'm doing,"
soys the ononymous groffiti ortist behind Sod Pondcr. "l just wont to
soy: '1'm here ond port of whcrt's hoppening on the streets.' IJ o
hoppy person wolks down the street ond encounters o Sod Pondo,
I hope he will osk himself: 'Whot's going on? Is something wrong?"'
When Sod Pondo found no more desks to defoce ot school, he
took this to the next level, to the streets, where he storted to put his
personol signoture, ln 2008. "l've been colled o pondo since I wos
o teen, since I guess I look like o pondo. So insteod of writing my
nome I drow cr pcrndo, o sod pcrndcr, becquse I'm o sod person."
The revolution hosn't mode Sod Pondo o hoppier person
"Moybe I'm more reolistic thon most people," soys Sod Pondo. "I've
tried to ignore whot's going on oround me, but sodly I've foiled.
Whot mcrkes me recrlly sod is thcrt while people ore fighting for cr
better Egypt, ond octuolly glving thelr lives for this couse, others
don't reolly cqre. We will never wln this revolution i{ we ore not
unlted; we should o11 be together."

Observer lurned doncer: groffiti ortisi El Teneen odded legs ond o

bollerino skid to Sod Pondo, Morghoni Bridge, Heliopolis.
' Prolesiers socrificing themselves for freedom, Zomolek.
After the Mospero mossocre, when Egypiion Christions protesting the
destruction of o church were killed in closhes with the ormy, Sod Pondo
stopped being iust on observer. "He wos more ongry ihon sod," soys Sod
Pondo's creotor ond olter ego. The writing "A Sod New Yeor," wos odded
loter. Morghoni Bridge, Heliopolis.
' Sod Pondo believes groffiti belongs in the street, noi in o gollery:
thot's why he preferred to stoy outside the Townhouse Gollery, Coiro.

72
 & A mixed group of protesters in front of the Mugommo otTohrir Squore. ln the crowd one con
recognize the {ollowing historic {igures: Anwor Sodot, Nietzsche, Hitler, Costro, ond the Egyption reform
leoder Mohommed ElBorodei; deposed president Muborok's foce is poinled over in block. Thowro
Tunnel, Heliopolls.
A protester pierced by bullets, porl of Sod Pondo's "Revenge Woll" ot the Foculty o{ Fine Arts, Zomolek.
Scd Pondo soys: "The field morshol mokes me even sodder." Foloki Squore, Coiro.
Sod Pondo odded the sitting figure io the olreody existing soldier pointed by on unknown groffiti ortist.
Port of "Revenge Woll" ot the Foculiy o{ Fine Arts, Zomolel<.
 ,-lYl tr U'l A t[ARS
I'rtlon Mospero, the French orchoeologist, is probobly turnlng in his
1r, r',,'l'irdoythe nome Mcrspero hos become synonymous wlththe
,rl ,, | ,Lrl(:ci building thot houses the Egyption Rodio ond Television
I l, , ,rr (ll'fU). The revolutron hos revecrled the true Joce of this stote-
' rr, ,, I rnedio orgonlzotion. As o key mouthpiece lor the old regime,
't ' ri , )rc of the first buildings to be protected by the Egyption Army
t,,rrr ,1 llre outbreok o{ the revolution. Behind o shield of tonks ond
,rrr, ,l 1;11l6ljsrs, RTU olwcrys sides with the ruling regime ond its
I I r r ri vicw ' Flrst, RTU supported Muborcrk until he wos dethroned
,, I ', 'bruory 2011, ond hos since then contlnued belng the porrot
t r tlr, , lr"4inistry of Informotion ond for the SCAF (Supreme Council of
r 1 ,, /\ r rrnd Forces), the militory rulers. The RTU does not stop ot mis-
r,,1, r rrrrrrr 1 the generol public: they ore olso occused of inciting hotred
,,, i ,r ,lcnce. Among the 43,000 employees o group o coliing them
, | ,r; "'l lre Free Mospero Group" wos formed. They ore o beocon
'
I lr, rl rl I r r o building thot hos turned journolism into o shomeful croft

lrr llrr,; poste-up by Hotem, Mel Gibson, with o middle finger in ploce of
r Lr'.l.rl longue, oriiculotes on obscene snori o{ derision-khuhl Zomolek.
It Slr:ncils by Zook, Zomolek.
'l rlylrlion lelevision liors," Downtown Coiro.
'( ll.or) your broin yourself, so thot no one woshes il for you," Zomolek.
 J{,AZT E R

Sd& ti
Nozeer's greolesl inspirolion is Tohrlr Squcrre. It's o
ploce to which he keeps returning, both in
lL;rlr ^qr,
the flesh qnd in his street ort. "Tohrir Squore
is where we oll met, where different cultures
merged into one, ond where we oll felt the
collective wisdom for eighteen doys. Tohrlr
Squore olso gove me the guts to express
myself without Jeor of rejection."
Nozeer pointed his first piece of grolfiti
ort o couple of months before the revolution,
ln October 20 10. Together with o cousin
who is octive in the April 6 Movement, he
pointed the clenched fist the group hos
copied from Otpor, the Serbion onti-regime
youth movement, olong with the messqge
"Yes to Chongel"
Not much hos chonged for the better,
though. Nozeer believes Tohrir Squore stl11

hos q role to p1oy, ond thot it remoins the

only meons through which to pressure rulers
for people's rights. Besides moking groffiti
thot ottocks corruption ond Egypt's stote
medlo, Nozeer's yeIlow qnd often witty rood
signs dlrecting people to Tohrir Squore ore
seen oll over Coiro. "My ideo is to lure people
to teom up with the octivists ot the Squore, to
join the only poth to our freedom." 'l "f ohrir: your oddress is here," corner of Mohomed Mohmoud
Street ond Qosr ol-Nil Street.
-' The siole medio building, lobeled "Liors," is blown up, Dokki.

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" [rlr i
: y.)LJr tr. l r::s is re e," iVtcrcrcli
- At- rcrl Yrr;:, r, lou rde c rc Io rc s:i 'ltuo r:oc]rr
fl .,:ir
o[ Iro Ho]ro! rov.r nor Ir Gozc, "3 yccr :": Yossir dioc in
2lrtf :i i . lc 'gele( < i rrl lry ls-oe Mc rrr i

To r rling hc L-'r]i'r-r "Bul lre c rc lr rc sr't io e r yr: ,''

r,rys l'rczear, "crrri pcogr i: wi I hcve 1o be p epcrred for cr ong
,;iruggle " i\Accrdi
T re -ocrcl sictrrsoys: "iohrir: loin llrc rcvolutiot'r " ln iccl
( ro\/.r -e i/r,-rs rr l s c lrr lelevislor o rcl oclio rui dilrg: "Trc:
r ooc oi 1.e rc ly ; is o r ycu- rcr rc s, Mc s re o " Mcrccl
eb
lo sg':ir,r e[ o ght: "Tc]i:.-oleorrdse-ols
y,oLr :r: {," 'fc r' y,or cciC ess ls re e," "Tcrr i-: loin ilre
r.'roillio r," Zr: rrcrlr:l<
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"Tre revo ution continues," by

Irrleer , Zorncrlel<
(-ois spelling the word "No," Zornolel<.
" Ire cow is Egypt," soys Amnror Abu
tr "She colls her sons, but ihey ore cll
, , l,rng I wanl the peop e 10 wol<e up, 1o
,, 1 ttypt Enough oI sleeping! Egypl needs
, lrclp io gel up on her feet ogoin." 4#1"il! clt il
, rired Mohmoud Sireet, Coiro

l, rcil by Ammor Abu Boi<r, Mohoneci t

,: rroud Street, Coiro
,r ( ciro version of Spoce lnvoders, 6s*& !
\"

,r,olis I i"t^
'1r lonuory Down wiih the stote o{
,,t r," Moodi 'i"'i .,r{r.l

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ZEtiT

storted wlth his dediccrtion to the Polestinion

Zefl's inleresl in groffiti
r:oLr:;e For cr long tlme he hcrd odmired Bonksy, the British street
rr tir; , crnd his work on Isroel's seporotion woll in the West Bonk
f'lrc lqypticrn revolution pushed Zeft to grob the sproy ccrn himself.
" My firsl stencil wos o portroit of Muhommod o1 Durrcrh, the young
lroy who wos shot by the Isroell ormy in Gozo in 2000. I did the sten
*W r: orr ilic eleventh crnniverscrry of his deoth, 30 September "
@&'Wed,u Since then Zeft hcrs deveioped hls own style His stencils ore
ffiMMtffie*sr
uwM ollcJcrnt crnd thought provoking, signed by his tog, o sproy con
MW$,i@ Zcl1, who hcrs turned his focus from Polestlne to Egypt, doesn't wont
r$M
o r r lrc:l him self on ortist. "l'm just o guy trying to deliver o messoge I
|l,
I lrr rk you should soy whot you belleve in, no mcrtter whot. My stencils ]I

rr r o o r'efl-oction of my thoughts crnd by sproying them on the wolls of

( lcriro, T wcrnt everyone wcrlking in the streets to feel the revolutlon "

The foce is o combinotlon of Tulonkhomun ond o Vendetto mosl<:

"Thc revolution o{ihe descendonts will resiore the glories." In the middle,
octors Adel lmom ond Abd ol-Moneim Modbouli soy: "We ore ihe
people from Tohrir," echoing the title of their 1979 movie We Are the
People {rom fhe Bus, bosed on o true story oboui lorture during the
Nosser ero Zomolek
Rodo lslond, Coiro

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tootboll is big in tgypl. It used to be bigger thon politics, but not ony
more. Since the eorly doys of the revolution Egypt's footboll fons-
the Ultros-hove ployed on importont role in the protests ond
continue to do so in the ongoing revoiution. Egypt's Ultros hove
people in ten clubs, but most of the members ore divided between
supporters of the Ahly club, colled Ultros Ahlowy, ond Ultros White
Knights, who ore ossocioted with the Zomolek footboll teom. A
typicol Ion hos been described by one okrserver qs "o guy who
lives in o one-bedroom flot with his wi{e, mother-in-low, ond {ive
kids. He is poid minimum woge ond life sucks. The only good thing
obout hls life is thot for two hours on o Fridoy he goes to the
stqdium ond wqtches his teom ploy." Before the revoiution,
footboll served os o breothing spqce for the bottled-up roge ond
frustrotion felt by so mony Egyptions. The Ultros groups took port
in the uprising from the very beginning. As eorly as 22 lanuary,
three doys before the revolution kicked off, unknown Ultros
uplooded o video on YouTube reossuring people not to be ofroid
of joining the demonstrqtions ond thot the Ultros would be ot Tohrir
Squore ond ln the streets reody to protect the protesters ogoinst
the police ond security forces. These were no empty words. The
Ultros ore very well-orgqnized groups thot spreod their culture
through the Internet, songrs, ond groffiti. Their groffiti qrtists work in
disciplined teqms; nothing is pointed or written on q woll without
prior discussion ond opprovol by their leoders.

Gizo.
ry^ Rodo lslond, Coiro.
""t' Downtown, Coiro.
4, An Ultros groffiti o*ist in oction in lmbobo, Coiro
;;{i Moodi.
'h..1, Mounib, Coiro.
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Uliros Ahlowy,
Mounib, Coiro.
Coiro.
Ahly supporlers
in lmbobo.
Field Morshol
Tontowi wonts you,
Morghoni Bridge,
Heliopolis.
Ultros remember
the Port Soid Mossocre,
Minyo
The Joker, Ultros
White Knighis, Minyo.
 "One notion, o third uprising," tJ
l(nights, Nosr Ciiy
Gizo
Minyo
Coiro.
"Just try to understond us Or clr, ,

we're dongerous?" Monsouro

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"You 0re tgyplion, roise your heodl" chonted jubllont pro-
testers ot Tohrir Squore when Muborok finolly left
power on I I Februory 201 1. Egiyptions ore by noture
o very proud people. But for mony decodes the helrs
of o glorious post felt they were of little importonce, to
the regime ond to the rest of the world. Egyption self-
esteem hod reoched rock bottom when the so-colled
Arob Spring knocked ot the door. The revolution
octed os o rebirth for the Egyption notion. in every
possible woy-through songs, poems, theoter, ond
groffiti-people expressed the pride of being free
ond new Egyptions.
H,((
,(
9rr

Downlown Coiro.
15 Moy Bridge, Coiro.
& .. Mohomed Mohmoud Sireet, Coiro.
 7

An lslor-nic rebel with o beord in the style of o royol

phorooh by l(eizer, Coiro
Moodi
Alexo nd i'icr.
A phorooh demonding lhe rights of the mcrtyrs,
Tohrir Squore
 I lr,' I,lylrlrrrrr, rrrllr', Mrtrtrli
"l r1y1,l,,,Lrr r,,rrllry," Ntr:;r City
"Y,,trlr,,l,, tr,tl,, ' rr tlrllctctttce,"
Al,,r, rr, lr , r

"l ,,rll ,,rrl rrrlr rrry lrr',i lrrcrrllr "

Mrrrlyr','r,rrrr, , lr,,rr ]r'll lo rirJlrl:
l(rrrr ( ,,rrrrl, A,4, ,lrlrrr,'rl I tttctcl,
I l,rrrr,lr A,l''1, I l,rrrr,rilrr l,rrlrtr, Arrrito
l,rlrAir, rrlr,l
l,lr, r lr l. lrrrrrl,lrlll, ( ttttcr

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 IREEDIElvl
PAIilTERS
Shonly ofter lhe foll of Muborok o group of twenty five young students
in Nqsr City got together under the motto: "Pointing for o better-
looking Egypt." At first the group, who colled themselves Freedom
Pointers, hod no other gool thon to beoutify their neighborhood, but
in post-revolutionory Egypt it wos difficult to stoy owoy from politlcs,
ond the pointers stcrrted to odd slogons to their murols. "It wos oc-
tuolly forced on you, ofter the revoiution, to keep yourself informed
obout whot wos hoppening," soys Isro, on qrt student ond member
of Freedom Pointers.
A shored experience omong the young pointers wos the new
feeling of being "Egyption ond proud." "Before the revolution mony
young Egyptlons plonned to lecrve Egypt; they lelt there wos no hope
here, no future. But when Muborqk wos deposed, we felt Egypt wos
ours ogoin. It wos o rush of feellngs; we were willing to flght for
Egypt, even dle for our country."
It took o while before Isro ond her colleogues reolized thot the
removol of Muborok would not outomoticolly bring chonge to Egypt
ond thot the Freedom Pointers ore still needed ln the streets. "Our
messqge todoy must be: 'lt's not over yet. Don't let the regime turn
us ogoinst eoch other. Stoy togetherl"'

Egyption ond proud: lhe womon weors the Egyption stoie symbol, lhe
eogle, oround her neck, ond her eorring corries the symbol of unity
between Christions ond Muslims. Nosr City.

I06
.f rr
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Nosr City.
"Tohrir Squore, blood of the
moriyrs, 25 [JonuorY]," Nosr CitY'
f os the Christion cross, C os
the lslomic crescent, Nosr CitY
& Nosr CitY.
"Egypt" ond "The moriYr
Ahmed Bossiouni," who wos shot
deod by police on 28 JonuorY
20,1 l. Nosr City, Coiro.
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 The Freedom Pointers logo,
Nosr City.
"Egyption," Nosr City.
Murol by Rufoido, Nosr City.
 d
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 AIAA AWAII
to Coiro ond gove the city's groffiti o
Aloo Awod rome like o deserl wind

totolly new mecrning. Together with his ortist frlend ond colleogue
Ammor Abu Bokr, he took leove from teoching ori in Luxor ond went
to the copitcrl, where he put hls ortistry ond pcrssion for freedom into
groffiti murols thot people hod never seen before. Aloo Awod points
mlthiccrl stories of life ond deoth, populoted by gods, good ond evil
humons, lions, wolves, crnd other creotures entongled in o struggle
for survivol. "I'm not here becouse I'm q pointer; I come to support
the revolution. I hcrve no other tool. I con't stond up crnd give speeches. I

Art is my only weopon." Aloo ond his ortist colleogues hove turned I

severol streets neor Tohrir Squore into on open ort go1Iery, visited
by Egyptions who genercrllywould not set foot in on exhibition room.
"My messcrge to people is: Be steodfostl I've witnessed horrible thlngs I

while I've been pointlng in Coiro, lots of people hove been killed ond
lnjured, ond mdny ore ofroid to contlnue the fight for freedom. But if
we lecrve the bottle, if we retreot crnd glve up now, we wlll flnd our
selves belng oppressed ogoin. We hove to free the slove withln us
ond kill our recrdiness to be ruled by someone mlghty ond powerful."

1" Anubis, the socred dog, wolches his creotor, Aloo Awod, while he
prepores o murol on Yusif ol-Gindi Sireet, Downtown Coiro.
'l' The horse of freedom escopes her ottockers, detoil of o murol oi
Tohrir Squore.

u3
 Struggle for survivol, murol ol Tohrir Squore.
A hidden correr on Mohonred Mol'rmoud Street,
Downtown Coiro
A pcrcrde of po iticcrl pr isore s T're wriling to the
righi soys: "On the clownfcrll of the regime: the regime
siill hos nol lollen Whol difference is there between
be{ore ond now ronel" Chonrpol ion Streei, Coiro

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 The Botlle of the Comel, wherr riders orrltol,r,r, trlilrr rrrrrrcl rrllrril.t:cl
proiesters in Tohrir Squcrre Chcrnrpolliorr Sltcr'1, ( r tttir
Detoils of o murol ot Tohrir Squorc
Aloo Awod's slim ond elongoled figutrrr, rr",,'ttrl)l(' llr(' wr)rl ol OLrr'lrrv
i l(limt. Here, Field Morshol Tontowi, itr o:,lrrrrrt lry Atttttt'rr Alrrr Ilitl'r, r"
I
being turned upside down. Chompolliorr Slrr','l

;r
 GII{EIHA ICMN$
0ldmovieslorsolsoplcryoro1e1nthclir11r1,,lrr,']
cilsof UmmKulthum,Egypt'srrosllrr,,, i i, i lr r ii
of herJomous scntencesonthe rvcrllr;: "l', i ,r

well known comedy crciors osk irr crroL r,, I i

tionwork?"Egypthoscrlongcinenrol rr Lr,r, rtr,

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I

Most oi the movie stcrrs whose portrrriL L

I groffitr belong to the so colled goldc r ( r( t, , ,l I ,

1940s ond 1950s Egypt's old bloLrk LLr, r

on DVDs, os clips on YouTubc, crnd lrr,,, , i, ,

4
on scrtellite TV chonnels, hove o13o ,1,
omong the young genercrtion "l lovr. I r,,r , i

* the life thot l wlsh to see in Egypt, " sr ),: , r '. ' i

of soclol freedoms ond wom-on crre rr r,L '.' l

The Foggolo quorier in Coiro used to ho:l lir,'lrlylrlrrrr lr rr rr, r,lry

ln memory of its glorious post, the Street Alclilr l' , ,1, , l lr, r , ry, r l

octors from the 50s ond 60s, {rom righl to lr:ll Al,,l ,rl l,rll,rlr ,rl (Jr,rr ,

Mory Mounib, Forid ol-A1rosh, ond locol cctlr' ,,'.r r,' l,rl ,1,
a

t
i Aclor Ezzot ol-Aloyli, Foggolo, Coiro
Egyption Pulp Fiction, with octors Tcnvlr,l ,, Ir, ,l r 1rr,; rll ,rr,l i

Yosin. The stencil, by Chorles Akl crnd Anrr (-,rrrrr, r , r l, , ,l 1", , r

from the movie My Wife's Groom Tohrir Slrr.l, ( r I 1,,

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Acior Stephon Rosti: "Just o second, l'll go ond

protest ond come bock Io you," Downtown Coiro.
Umm Kulthum: "There is o limit to potience,"
t$url,rl
Moodi.
Singer Asmohon, Foggolo.
Actors Mohommed Sood (ol-Limbi) ond Aloo
Woli ol-Din: "Wos the revolution successful, Mr.
Limbi?" Moodi.
Opposiie:
"They told me whot potience is," o fomous
line by singer Umm Kulihum. Morghoni Bridge,
Heliopolis.
Actress Shewikor, in dointy Arobic: "This is
impossible to comprehend," Downiown Coiro.
Actor Ghosson Molor: "l'm not evil, l'm not
like the Field Morshol," Moodi.
Actor Mohomed Redo, quoling Noguib
Mohfouz: "The problem's not thot the iruth is
horsh . . ." (for full tronslotion see poge 193),
by Amr Gomol, Zomolek.
123
 fiIHIHAR
AB U BAI(R
"The revolulion liberoted me," soys Ammor Abu Bcrkr, o
thlrty two yeor o1d pointer from Luxor who hod
stopped pcrlnting five yeors prlor to the revolution.
But Ammor, who is olso o teocher of the Foculty of
Fine Arts rn Luxor, wos still extremely productive
during these yecrrs, filling twenty-seven notebooks
wlth thouscrnds of sketches, drowlngs, crnd ideos
for polntlngs. "1've olwoys hoted to be locked up
inside o studlo moklng ort crbout people," explolns
Ammor. "l hcnre o strong need to be out there, with
the people ot coffee shops, Sufi festivols, ond
mulids- where I con be pcrrt of whcri's hcrppenlng
ond copture people ln the mldst of their lives." The
revolution brought o11 the pleces toqether for Ammor.
Flnding hlmself in the middle of on uprising, he
joined the people wlth his pcrint crnd brushes ond
turned the wcllls olong the streets of Ccriro crnd
Luxor into o huge convos. Together with his ortlst
frlends Aloo Awcrd crnd Honoo El Deghom, Ammcrr
Abu Bokr hos developed cr totolly originol ond unique
grcrfflti sty1e, new not only to Egypt but to the rest of

The hydro of the security opporoius in Egypt,

Mohomed Mohmoud Street, Coiro.

'Feosts for soints or holy per sons

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 the world. Ammor's sources of inspiroiion ore the
mony expressions of ort thot he hos been oble
to explore in Luxor, where he 1lves, close to the
oncient Egypticrn temples ond tombs. Ammor
describes Luxor os o trecrsure trove of imoges "l{
you investigote o tomb, you will flnd loyers ol
groffltl {rom crll periods; people from mony differ
ent cultures hove put their mork on the wolls {or
thousonds of yecrrs: oncient Egyptions, Greeks,
Romons, Copts, Muslims, Nopoleon's ccrrtogro-
phers, British soldlers, up to todoy's tourists. I
respect oll the eiements in this pictoriol history
ond I tcrke it with me when I polnt my own murols.
By dolng thls, I olso wcrnt to send o messoge to
my fellow countrymen: Egypt is cr country of mony
cultures ond beliefs, not only one."

:' Sheikh Emod Effot wos shot in the heort by o

member of the militory police in Tohrir Squore on 16
.l
December 20,l . Mohomed Mohmoud Sireel, Coiro.
;r "Seorch with the people." First lieutenont Mohmoud
Subhi ol-Shinnowi, o security officer occused of oiming
ot the eyes of protesters, Downtown Coiro.
.'i' Moior Mohomed ol-Botron wos killed defending
his stotion ogoinst escoped prisoners. Mohomed
Mohmoud Street, Coiro.
'," A possoge from the Qur'on: "And they sholl soy:
O our Lord! surelywe obeyed our leoders. . ." (for
full tronslotion see poge 193), Mohomed Mohmoud
Street, Coiro.
Fo//owing poges:
Murol on the woll o{ the Foculty of Fine Arts, Luxor,
commemoroling ihe brove protesters ot Tohrir
Squore, with "Speciol congrotulotions from Egypt's
revolutionories to the police force on the onniversory
of the 25 Jonuory Revolution ?????"

126
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"We ore oll the nrortyr Mino Donyol," Luxor

Top left: Stencils inside the Focully of Fine Arts, Luxor.
The mortyr Esom Atto, who died in prison ofter being lortured, Mohomed Mohmourl
't
Slreet, Coiro.
Ahmed Hororo, who lost on eye in the bottles on 2B Jonuory 2011 ond then lo:;t
the other on l9 Novernber "Slop your disciple, lnrom, ond lell llre liors how red lri:,
cheel<s ore " Ouiside lhe porlioment building, Coiro
"lnierior Fox Films presen't: Which of Us /s the Ihief? Siorring oi-Hombuli Now
in Luxor in corrmerr.lorotion of the securily vocuum 2011 " Ai-Hombuli wos blorle(l
for mony crimes in ond oround Luxor unlil his orresi in2Ol2.
"Your eye": Field Morshol Tontowi is irnogined with o lost eye, lil<e so mony of llr(.
proteslers, outside the porlioment building, Coiro.
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 WO,]YIAN POWER

"Moslfgyplionwomenoresuperr,/omen One,r r rr r ,l , tlr rLLrLrl,, r,,

hoursonEgyptionwomonworks itno'.,r't ,;,, : \',/ Li ,,Lirrrl
whot do we get?" osks MerncrThonrl;, 11,'y, r r,l ui,)rr(r r 1,,'lr rrl
the Horiml (femole) groffiti projcc:l "Lr171 , , rl;, r,' , r,t L lr()nl
overyyoungogethot'youconlrotrl,rllrr l,,,r, r, Ll,)rr(r1l
The Horimi grolfiti compclglr wrl ; 1,, lr I I L L rl1 I rr'\./.lj(-l
negcrtiveviewsoJwomen.Merlltt':; .ttl, ,r L r, ,1r11,, 1i,llr( (lll)()when
r
shescrwopieceof groffitidelrir:l rrrll ,' ji,r l,rl,,'r LTinr lrrrrriqcrb,
thefoceveil,togetherwiththclo:,1: "',, rr,r l lr, " "llrL,rltcrlliIwcrs
sosimplecrndyetsopowerlr ir;l ,l: rrr'1 rrrr, l Tltctl 'swhyllike
groffitisomuch:if crnimcrqlor;1r,,rrl:r;1,, r,'i ur ,r:;ospecrktoothers;
grcrffrti recrlly hcrs the pov,re' l(, , lr,ttt, 1, Llr, , , ,ll,'i Livc <--onsciousness "

"You owe me my rights," Tolrrir SclL;crrc

Somiro lbrohim obove o group ol soldiers, crll with the foce of Ahmed
Adel ol-Mugi, who forced Sonriro oncl seventeen other femole proleslers
from Tohrir Squore to undergo virginily lests olter they hod been detoined
by the mililory in Morch 201I Scrnriro broughl ol-Mugi to courl, where he
wos ocquiiied. Mohorned Mol'rn.roud Street, Coiro.
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Singer Suod Hosni: "Girls
ore /ike boys," Downtown Coiro
"Get o rgry," by 4SproyCcr rs
to honor lhe wonren otTohrir,
Zonrolel<
"Wonren ore divor ci rg SCAF,"
by Rodz, Downlowr Coiro
"Government, feor us!" by
l(eizer, Zonrolel<.
An Egyp'tion version of
Bonl<sy's forrous groffili of o girl
frisl<ing o soldier, Mohomed
Moh .lloud Street, Coiro

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"No louchirrg, crrslrcrlior r i: wcriling Ior you," Downlown Coiro.
"Doncing 1o llrc lrrrros ol llre revolulion, No to emergency lows,"
Downtown Crrircr
"The queen ol cyirlr;," M<;lrorned Mohmoud Streei, Coiro
Ninio suit lor [r:rrrcrl,, pri>lr:slers: o stencil before the onniversory
o{ the revolution, 25 Jrrnucrry 20 12, by Bosmo Homdy, Dokki.
"The girls o{ FclyJrl crrc o rt:cl line," Monsouro.

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A moioilly o[ Egyplions Iive in dusty ond ugly housing complexes where

o cleon street, o spot of green, or o swing of o ployground remoins
o {or-fetched dreom. "We believe people hove the right to hove some
beouty oround them," soys Ghodo ol-Mqlik, murol pointer qnd one of
the orgonizers behind severol collective street-ort projects in Cqiro.
V/hen more thmr sixty cntists joined forces ond storted pointing murqls
in Imbobo, q poor neighborhood in Coiro, it wqs o hoppy moment
for Ghodo. "lt hod been my dreqm Jor q long tlme to toke our ort to the
streets ond build o bridge between us, the ortists, ond the people.
But it wos impossible during Muborok's regime; his government
wqnted to control everything ond didn't ollow ortists to point freely."
During o street-qrt project the murol pointers work in close
cooperotion with the inhobitonts. Not o stroke of point is put on o
woll before the ortists hove met with the people living in o house,
listened to their ideos, ond together decided the finol motif for the
murol. Sometimes people ore ofroid thot the ortists will defoce their
house, or point something politicol or religious on the wqlls, qnd
therefore do not wont to be port of the project. But qfter o couple of
weeks, when they con see how beoutiful the rest ol the street is
becoming, they beg the pointers to bring some beouty to their
house, too. Ghodo ond her ortist colleogues believe ort qnd beouty
con chonge people's lives, or qt leost bring some hormony to their
lives. "I qsked o mqn whot he felt in the mornings when he wolked
down the street qnd sow the colorful polntlngs on hls woy to work.
'Hoppiness,' he onswered. 'l feel hoppiness."'

,/r' Portroit of Osomo Abd ol-Hoqq, who took the initioiive to

invile the orlisls to point in his home quorter of lmbobo, Coiro,
by Osomo Abd ol-Moneim.

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"'h lmbobo.
nfo A corpenier outside his workshop pointed
by the ortists, lmbobo.
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The protective hond of Fotimo, doughter

of the Prophet Muhommod, lmbobo.
A woll in lmbobo where the children were
invited to point.
A poem in Foggolo: "O Foggolo, Arobs
ond foreigners golore chose you, lived in
your houses, loved your lones; you gothered
oll-gentlemen, poshos, troders-ond to oll
humonity you olwoys open your orms."
lmbobo.
Detoil of o lorger murol. lmbobo.
lmbobo.
Pointing by Hebo Soleh, lmbobo.

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Mony omozing things hoppened in Egypl during the elghteen doys of uprising
thcrt toppled the Muborok regime. Some of the most memoroble
moments in Tohrir Squcrre were those when Christlons ond Muslims
prcryed together {or the unlty ond strength to stoy stecrdfost crnd not
to give up until their joint ccrll, "We demond the removol oJ the
regime," hod been hecrrd. But the old tenslons between Egypt's two
moin religious communitles, thot come to o rest during the eorly
doys of the 25 lonucrry Revolutlon, keep surfoclng ond cousing feor
ond confuslon omong Egyptions, especiolly the Christion minority.
Mony of the groffiti ortists continue to crecrte stenclls ond polntlngs
reminding their fellow Egyptlons of the revolutlonory "Tohrir spirit, "
when crll cltlzens were brothers ond sisters, shoring the some
dr-oom of freedom-

Detoil of o murol on the woll of ihe Foculty of Fine Aris, Zomolek.

Mohomed Mohmoud Street, Coiro.

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"lt's our Egypi, oll of us," Zomolel<.

Muslim ond Christion unity demonstroted with the imoges
of two iconic mortyrs, Sheil<h Emod Ezzot ond Mino Donyol
In red: "Hislory will one doy wriie thot the youih of Egypt
poid o lot o{ blood for o little freedom " In block: "We will be
victorious for your sol<e." Downiown Coiro
Someone hos iried to erose the cross ond crescent, Luxor
"We ore oll Egyptions," Alexondricr.
Muslim ond Chrisiion uniiy in lmbobo: "God is love."
 lMARilY'R$

When the woll of feor wos finolly broken o new ond brove Egyptlon wos
born. Most of the protests durlng the uprlslng were peoceful, but the
outhorlties' response wos not: Eqpt lost mony of its most courcrgeous
men ond women in the revolution. At leost 840 people were kllled ond
oround 6,500 were lnjured during the eighteen doy uprising in eorly
20 I I. Thousonds were detcrined cmd mony tortured by the security forces
or the ormy. More victims were loter odded to these block numbers
in the closhes thot hove token picrce since the ousting of Muborok.
The mcrrtyrs ond heroes of the revolution ore not forgotten.
Thonks to the grolflti ortists, portroits of prominent octivists ond
fcrllen comrcrdes crre visibie o11 over Egypt. Most of the tlme o shohid,
or mortyr, ls commemoroted wlth the use of o stencil thot con eosily
be reproduced in unlimited numbers. Some of the most skillful grofflti
ortists hove turned pcrssport photogrophs-downlooded from the
Internet lnto huge woll portroits, o sort of street version of soints'
icons, reflecting the spirlt of the follen young womon or mon.

"l Woll of Mortyrs. Alexondrio.

;t"' Mortyr
Romi ol-Shorqowi, with o poem by Amol Donkol: "l om honging
from the morning gollows. My foreheod bows io deoth, becouse it did not
bow while I wos living." Qosr ol-Nil Street, Coiro.

153
 "4.!ir,,/k/,|.1)1;t1tqtil:tfi.1.,,tq\q tr.p4q1.t:ry1!n,, % 1..."11,t - r

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"Tlrc Eloquent Voice of the Revolution," Yusri Foudo,
iournolist ond slounch odvocote of {reedom of expression,
by Anrmor Abu Bcrl<r, Mohomed Mohmoud Streei, Coiro
Activisi Ahmed Hororo: "Your silence is l<illing me," by
Nozeer, Moodi.
"Ahrned Hororo, the Eye of the Revolution " Hororo losl bolh
his eyes to the revolulion, lhe first on 2B Jonuory, ihe second
on I9 Novernber 2Ol l. Mugommo Building, Tohrir Squore
Hoson ol Boghdodi: "The revolution continues," Alexondrio.
"Roisc your heod high, you ore Egyption." Mohomed
Gcmol 'Mosri,' on octive porticipont in Tohrir sil-ins ond
nrernbcr of pro democrocy committees, who wos stobbed
lo deoth on 2l Jonuory 2012, Luxor.

156

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&
 Mortyr Korim, victim of the Pori Soid Mossocre,
Roxy Squore, Heliopolis.
Mortyr Mohomed Gomol Selim, 28 yeors old, by
Nemo, Monsouro.
',1r'" Ahmed Hororo. "Will you see if I pluck your eyes
ond reploce them with two iewels? Do you see ihese
ore things thot con'l be bought?" Ouiside the Porlio-
ment, Coiro.
'\- . Mortyr Noser Foysol Ali, Sudon Street, lmbobo.
'.rr, "To those who socrificed iheir lives for the future of
the notion: o soluie of glory ond pride to the Mortyrs
of the 25 Jonuory Revolution," Suez.

I60
 l([lATED $ALD
/i' On the Alexondrio Corniche, Kholed Soid oppeors olongside
o lisi of the nomes of his killers.
-tr Together with moriyr Romi ol-Shorqowi (right) Mugommo Kholed Soid wos nol on o(livisl or even the occosionol protester. He wos just
Building, Tohrir Squore, Coiro. on ordinory, middle-closs twenty eight-yeor-old lMng in Aiexondrio.
,r1 "Reiribution." The blue scribble soys: "Government of pimps,
Still, he wos brutolly beoten to deoth for reosons unknown by two
you bostords. Down with militory rule." Downiown Coiro.
-;a Soid meons 'hoppy'-here, mish hos been inserted in Kholed's police officers on o summer's night in 2010. The killing took ploce
nome, to reod: "Kholed is not Hoppy," Mohomed Mohmoud outside on Internet cofe, with severol young men witnessing the
Street, Coiro.
twenty-minute-long beoting ond Kholed's desperote pleos for mercy,
but people were too scored to intervene. Horrific photogrophs of
Kholed's bloody foce went vlrol through Egrypt's cyberspoce shortly
ofter he wos declored deod. But Khcrled wqs to be remembered by
crnother picture: o simple pcrssport shot of o sweet-looking young
mon, confident but o little bit shy in front of the comero. Every young
person in Egypt ond the rest of the world could eosily identify
with this portroit, ond Kholed become o symbol for o guy you would
hcrve loved to co1l your Irlend, your brother or your son.
Kholed's portroit wos stenciled ond pointed oll over Egypt's
wolls, from A-lexondrio to Luxor. Loter thot summer the Focebook
poge "We ore o11 Khcrled Soid" wos creoted. It would loter become
on importont tooi for orgonizing the protests thot elght months loter
brought down the Muborok regime.

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Toreq Abd ol-Lotif disoppeored on 28 Jonuory 2011 Omor Mohsen , ct 23-yeor old sludeni killed on 1 Februory
ond wos loter {ound deod in o Coiro morgue, tortured ond 2O12 al lhe Port Soid Mossocre, which lefi more thon 70 footboll
shoi in the heod Zomolel< fons deod ond hundreds iniured Zomolek.
I
Studenl Seif Alloh Muslofo, 16 yeors old, wos shoi on The portroil wos poinled over by o cleoning potrol from Coiro
2B Jonuory in Nosr Cily, Coiro. Neor Midon ol-lsoof, Coiro City Council
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Gonzeer is the untrowned king of Ccriro's street ort crctivists. He stcrrted his
groffiti coreer in Alexondrio, where he porticlpoted in o workshop
rD conducted by Ayo Tcrrek Gonzeer this groffitl ncrme meons
'bicyclechoin' dlscovered the politicol power of grofflti ot on eorly
ffi stoge. In Moy 2011 he took hls initlotive to the lirst "Mcrd Groffltl"

ttr event, encouroging young Egyptions to "bomb" the wo1ls of the

country with stencils. Since then Egypt hos witnessed o tsunomi of
groffiti thcrt the outhorities' cleoning potrols hove hod o hord tlme

t) keeplng up with. Still, mony of Gonzeer's own pieces hove been

reguloriy polnted over, omong them the fomous "Tonk versus Biker"
(see poges 24 29), which lost its originol meonlng due to the ongoing
I
"point bottle" between the ortlsts crnd the outhorities Gonzeer wcrs
the first groffiti crrtist to commemorote the vlctims of the revolution ,
)
by moklng lorger thon life portrcrits of the mcrrtyrs. On I I Februory
2011, the some dcry Muborok wos removed from power, Gonzeer
{
begon hls Mortyr Murol series on wolls oround Ccriro At the time
of writing, only one portroit in thls serles hcrs escoped the whitewcrsh
trecrtment In response to the frequent vondolism of hls works,
Gonzeer scrys the following: "lf whot I'm creotlngr hos nothing reli I
giously or sexuolly offensive in lt ond people still feel the urge to
destroy it, then I'm probobly doingr somethlng right."

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I No one hod ever seen such o streel murol rn Coiro before: elghteen
huge portroits of mon crrid women, crll pcrinted in the
notion's colors c.r1 blcrck red-white, thot struck the
Egyptions wilh its rcrked truth ond moved mcrny to
teors The 1wclvc.. porlroits, eoch with one eye bond-
oged, repr<.:sr:nLr:d lhe victims of o week of deodly
closhcs ttrcrl took p1c-rce in lcrte November 201I between
crnti SCIAL- (SuJrt:rno Council of the Armed Forces)
proteslors c.rnil ri<>l police
In crll, 1or ly poople dled ond two thousond were
injured c1L-rrirrq lhese closhes olone Mony of the
wourclr>il wc-'rc sliot directly ln the ioce, which led
pcoplc lo oi:c:lt;r-. thc rlot pollce of 'eye hunting.'
Acc:or<1irri; 1o IrLrrncrn rrghts orgonizcrtions more thcrn
sixty pr,'r-,plc losl on eye in the uneven bott]e. A week
crftcr llrc clrr;ircr; Ammcrr Abu Bokr crrrived in Coiro
ond bcl1crrr ;rcrinling the murol. Ammor chose o woll
on Muhc-rrrrrncrcl Mcrhmud Street where people hod
losl thoir <;ycs crnd mony others, thelr 1lves.
"Tlrr: rLrucrl is rny woy of scrying: 'Nol I reject the
oction:; ol tlr<: SCAF ond the pollce.'And when you
respecI cr ploc-c,., like this street, where people hove
fought crnd clicd lor lhe revolution, you wcrni to be pcrrt
of it, ond to lc-.11 llro lost of the world 'l wos here."'

Two boys honor the protesters who were shot in the eyes,
Mohomed Mohmoud Street, Coiro

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l \ Mcssoges in seve'c oye s: tre crrlisl irc ucled o cJ grcrffit stenci s lil<e thc tlrrcc nron<eys or tho
topirtolhenewpcriniings,ondvrsitorslcthe rurcrl cdclecl thei-owrwriti rgorthewriteeye polcles
ry Tire wol cor-ied eig rteer fcces of those iniu ed during ihe prolests, bu1 llre ecrl nur.nber of lhose
who losl their eyes during llre closhes in Novenrber 201I wos more thon sixly Thc nrurol wcrs whilc
wcshed by the outhorilics iusl before 25 Jcrnuory 2Ol2,Iie onniversory of the revolution.

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Stencil of one of the Qcrsr ol-Nil Bridge lions, o syn bol of Egypt, wilh on
eye pctch.
"Ho, ho, I con see," soys the scribbling on the eye potch.
"The Interior Ministry ore thugs," "Tl're Uilros ore not criminols "
"Fucl< the officer ond ihe Field AAorshol "
On the eye-pctch: "Ultros in Tohrir, fucl< you Field Morshcrl " On the left,
o Wonted posler for Homdi Bodeen, ihe chief of rrilitory police
On her foreheod: "Disgroce "

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h wos olmosl impossible lo grosp lhe lrogedy: seventy-four yourrg rrrerr

killed stobbed, beoten, ond trcrmpled to deoth ond cr thou I
sond more lnjured on o footboll fleld ln Port Soid. When Egypt
woke up on the morning of 2 Februory 2012, Ihe notlon found I
ltself ln o stote of shock ond lntense mournlng. Protesters fllled
the streets surrounding the Minlstry of interlor ln downtown
r
Coiro, convlnced thot the security forces were behind the
1
deodly ottock on the Ahly footboll teom's supporters, the
Ahlcnny Ultros Egypt's Ultros stood by the protesters ln Tohrlr t
Squore durlng the uprlslng ond ore lorgely seen os protectors
of the Igyprion Revoiution.

Aloo Awod, on odforum.com: "We wonied to recognize the key

role of ihe womeni whom we respect very much, in ihe struggle. Here
you see women os the oncient Egyptions depicted them. They ore
climbing o lodder thot symbolizes the revolution."
Femole protesiors, by Aloo Awod. The pointing is inspired by on
imoge from the Romesseum Temple ot Luxor.
 Ammor Abu Bokr crnd Aloo Awod, polnters crnd ort teochers
from Luxor, hoppened to be in Coiro to obtoin supplies of ort moteri
ols. Ammor olso hod o speciol reoson to choose I Februory os o
good dote {or the purchoses: hls girlfriend, who lives ln Ccrlro, wos
celebroting her birthdoy. But the 'porty' ended up in the streets.
When the news of the kl11lngs in Port Soid reoched the rest of Egypt,
Ammor ond Alcro, together wlth cr number of other ortists, went to
Mohomed Mohmoud Street ond begon to prepore the thirty-meter-
long woll of the Amerlcon Unlversity in Coiro for o murol pcrinting
in remembronce of the Port Sold mortyrs. It took severol weeks to
complete ond wos to become fomous worldwlde.
The creotion of the murol took plcrce omid the violent clcrshes thot
followed the Port Sqld mcrsscrcre. Mohomed Mcrhmoud Street
turned into o bottleground where the "people's ombulonces," motor
bikes, went bock ond forth from the front llne to the field hospltol ot
Tohrir Squore ond the oir wcrs thick wrth teor gos, but Ammor Abu
Bokr ond A1oo Awod didn't leove the wcrll; they just kept on polnting,
driven by the octlon ond tension ln the street. "When I moke grofflti
on o woll, I feel I'm in the woll, thot I become port of the polnting,"
soys Ammor, who polnted the portroits of the mortyrs. A1oo Awod
pointed the beginning ond the end of the murol's story, copturing
both the sodness ond the strength omong the protesters. In one
beoutiful section of the murol, inspired by on onclent Eglption temple
relief, femole worrlors ore climbing o lodder, reody to ioin the fight
for freedom. "The lodder ls o symbol of the revolutlon," exploins A1oo.
At the top of the woll, llnes from o song dedicoted to the mortyrs
hove been written ln red: "Deoth I no longer feor. In the midst oj
your terror, my heort sow the sun rise onew. Steoling our security,
destroying our houses; thcrt wos in the post, the time of silence."

"; Mohomed Mostofo, with the wings, wos o 19-yeor-old student

ond on Ultros Ahlowy supporier who died in the Port Soid Mossocre.
On the lodder, orlist Honoo El Deghom odds the decorotive elements
to the murol.

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Tlrc nrcrriyrs on the woll inciude Mcrlrnroud Ghcrndour (lett), o

22 yecr old studenl o1 Alexondrio Fcrculty of Commerce
Morlyrs oround o dcrle polm, lefi to riqlrt: Morwon, nrcrrlyr of
Moioriycr, Moh noud Sulinron, Mohor.red Gorrol Mohonred
O cr rge tec-s hcrve bcen odded to t ris po-troit of on u rrcr red
rcr iyr, ord o Mus ir clec orotion of foith

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supporter holding up o picture of o l<illed friend,
Mohmoud Mohsen
"F.oodam {ar Snmha " a vnt tno mon who

from o policemon

''"' ore thugs "

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Most o{ the mortyrs were young siudents

The monster soldier (left), reody 1o ottocl< protesters, is by Winged Elephonl.
The mortyrs, left to right, ore Ahnred Tol'ro, Korim Adel Khuzom, Muslofo Milwolli
f

,il
 ' A mother holds o porlroit o{ ihe son she lost in ihe Port Soid footboll mossocre.
Following poges: Shortly before ihe presidentiol elections in Moy 2012 the orlists returned
to ihe woll ond odded portroits of the mortyrs' mothers ond the following sorcostic messoge,
dressed in beoutiful colligrophy: "Forget whot hos possed ond focus on ihe elections."
 tRANStAti[r$t{$
Poge 1:
"The drecrm ccrrne bock, wlthout wcrrnlng
It Ilooded crs the NlLe us-^d to Ilood, crnd the iron shcrckle broke
The pcrtlence crnd ihe silence of the people ctre explcrined.
Ttre curtcrins of the night crre torn, crllowlng the stors to be seen in
brood dcryllglit
It exposed the shomelessness ond r,vhoredom, crll ot o prlce
o11
o
' t
The mortyrs of the hornelond crt'e the dowry Ior the bride of th-^ Nrle, ""1,'r' t'

So she will put on her dress, ond the ecrrrings wrll suit her,
And she will soy fcrrewell to her miselies "
the bride's eorring beors the word "Freedom."

PcrEe 9:
"Close your eyes oncl dcrnce .

k--ep your step 1iqht. Your portner

1s llfe hersell, you crre her knlght
She'll love you crs lorrg crs you step
proud crnd toll. If once you look Pcrge 19:
down ot your Ieet... you'11 foLl!" "The revolution is not o rnonopoly. It's not yours ctnd lt's not nllne
I
Poem by the EgYPtion It's owned by the one who threw his chest on the bcryorlet, lhe ontr
poet, cortoonist clnd plcr1'wright whose eye thc- bullet took ond he dldn't cry."
Solcth Jcrhin (i 930- BO) d cri Rohrnon o1'Abnourli

192

i
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p

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Poge 122:
''The problem's not thot the truth is horsh but thcrt liberotlon
from rgnoronce is os pcrinful os beingr born Run crfter truth
uniil you're brecrthless. Accept the pcrin involved in re-creoting
yourse Lf crfresh. These ldecrs wlll toke o 1lle to comprehend, o
hcrrd one lnlerspersed wlth moments cf curfew.''
\
from Pc/crce o-[Desrre by Ncrguib MohJouz, wlth the
finol rnord chcrnged: Lhe ollgincrl reods: ". .lnterspersed
wiih dnrnken moments."

Pcige 127: Poge 137:

''And they shcrll soy: O our LordL surely we obeyed our leod "Scrmircr lbrohiln, 25 yecrrs o1d,

ers ond oul grecrt rnvarr, so ihey 1--d us oslrcry {rom the poth; wcrs forcibly stripped crnd tested
O our Lorcl! give them c double punlshment ond curse them for vlrginity in front of ormy olficers
with cr greot cllrse " ond soidlers, but she refr-rsed io
Qur'on 33: 67 68 glve up her dignity, ond brought cr

,.1
(Shokir tronslcrtion) ccrse beJore the Egyptlon judiciory:
no intere st, no crowds, no medio,
$
nobody listened. Alioo Elmohdy,
t
n
20 yeors old, stripped ond reveoled
i,
her body entirely o{ her own wili.
Crowds crnd medlo swormed obout
her: crround 3 million seeing'her pic
ture, crnd not less thon fifty crrtlcles
ond numerous television progroms."

"Greetings of crffectlon, esteem, crnd support to Scrmiro

Ibrohim, Dcrughter of Upper EWpt."

1S3
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