Today, Firefly Tunnel Artists packed it up and headed back to Cairo in preparation for their show on Sunday, March 13.
The last two days have been spent exploring the desert oasis through performance & installation art, while after dinner discussions have revolved around ideas of philosophical identity, theory & nationalism, and the malleable nature of revolution.
Wednesday's workshop featured a "street jam" in Fayoum, where Artists began using their new skills to perform inpromtu installations on their way to the town-side oasis lakefront, while Thursday took them a step further into the dramatic desert planes.
Several Artists were daunted by the desert's overpowering scale, commenting on the difficulties of attempting to harness something so grand. After some guidance from Executive Director Tavia La Follette, Artists found a rythm and learned how to become a part of the scenery- something that will definately benefit them as they look to perform throughout Cairo- a city of over 26 million people- in the coming days.
The last two days have been spent exploring the desert oasis through performance & installation art, while after dinner discussions have revolved around ideas of philosophical identity, theory & nationalism, and the malleable nature of revolution.
Wednesday's workshop featured a "street jam" in Fayoum, where Artists began using their new skills to perform inpromtu installations on their way to the town-side oasis lakefront, while Thursday took them a step further into the dramatic desert planes.
Several Artists were daunted by the desert's overpowering scale, commenting on the difficulties of attempting to harness something so grand. After some guidance from Executive Director Tavia La Follette, Artists found a rythm and learned how to become a part of the scenery- something that will definately benefit them as they look to perform throughout Cairo- a city of over 26 million people- in the coming days.
Incorporating the results from a previous puppeteering workshop as part of her teaching residency at Fayoumg Art Center, Tavia La Follette and her multinatinoal gang of Artists have spent the past week constructing a 5' x 2.5' ft mask and 2' x 2' hand out of paper mache. After several in-depth conversations, the group believes it is important to reinforce the idea of unity during Egypt's trying times through performance.
"If there is one thing that the people need right now, it is for everyone to understand that we are all Egyptian," one Egyptian Artist asserted, requesting that the group exhibit the puppet with only one hand to drive home the message of unity.
On the back of the puppet's shall will be written all the names of Egypt's 365 Revolutionary martyrs, while the mask's forehead will read "Nahdet Masr", Egypt's symbol for the 1950's Revolution which freed the country from an English-Turkish regime.
Hoping to finish the tent-structure for three people to hide and operate the puppet by tomorrow, the puppet will tour around Cairo eleciting responses from the community on its way to the final exhibit.
The troup of 12 artists will spend tonight completing a "jam session" at Downtown Cairo's Windsor hotel in preparation as part of "Caricatures of the Revolution". The show starts 9:00 PM at Cairo's Atelier.
For more information about the show click HERE.
"If there is one thing that the people need right now, it is for everyone to understand that we are all Egyptian," one Egyptian Artist asserted, requesting that the group exhibit the puppet with only one hand to drive home the message of unity.
On the back of the puppet's shall will be written all the names of Egypt's 365 Revolutionary martyrs, while the mask's forehead will read "Nahdet Masr", Egypt's symbol for the 1950's Revolution which freed the country from an English-Turkish regime.
Hoping to finish the tent-structure for three people to hide and operate the puppet by tomorrow, the puppet will tour around Cairo eleciting responses from the community on its way to the final exhibit.
The troup of 12 artists will spend tonight completing a "jam session" at Downtown Cairo's Windsor hotel in preparation as part of "Caricatures of the Revolution". The show starts 9:00 PM at Cairo's Atelier.
For more information about the show click HERE.
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