Issue No. 606
Culture
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3 - 9 October 2002 Issue No. 606 Culture |
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Recommend this page | ||
Plain Talk
Some animals hibernate in winter, falling asleep for months and living on the good things consumed during the summer season. It is a way of conserving energy, of eking out the harvest during periods when there is little nourishment about. Here in Egypt, though, it is the culture scene that goes into hibernation, though only in the summer months. For during the hot season, lasting well over three months, there is scarcely any cultural activity. The art galleries that compete in winter shut down almost en masse -- the few that do remain open tend to host group exhibitions pieced together from works already shown in individual shows -- and, apart from one or two on-going private sector plays the theatre world is at a standstill.
Even government cultural organisations halt their activities. The Supreme Council for Culture and the National Specialised Councils suspend the meetings of their respective committees. The SCC, known for its unending seminars and conferences, has nothing to offer during the summer hibernation.
True, at the tail end of summer we have had some activities -- the Ismailia Folk Art Festival, the Experimental Theatre Festival. and now things are moving into full swing. There has been the Alexandria Film Festival, the Ismailia Film Festival for Documentary and Short Films which started on 28 September, and, of course, the Cairo International Film Festival. There will, too, be film festivals in Suez and Aswan.
There seems to be a real gluttony for film festivals. Apart from giving Egyptian audiences the opportunity to see good foreign films, these festivals naturally help to enhance the status of the cities where the events will take place.
Looking through the listings for the next few months, we find a variety of activities. Art exhibitions top the list and the highlights will include Ambassador in the Realm of Art by Mohamed Naguib, which opened at Gallery Grant, and the multi-national, multidisciplinary exhibit Take me to the River. This exhibition, opened by the Egyptian Minister of Culture and the US ambassador, displays works by artists from US, Brazil, Peru, Jamaica, South Korea and Pakistan. The exhibition was organised by the Foreign Cultural Relations Department of the Ministry of Culture, the Cairo Opera House and Al- Hanager.
Exhibitions aside, there is an impressive programme by the Cairo Symphony Orchestra, the Cairo Opera Ballet and the Cairo Opera Orchestra. Theatre, however, seems to be the black sheep of the family with plays one can count on the fingers of one hand.
For those who seek serious food for the thought there are lectures given at both Egyptian and foreign cultural centres and the seminars organised by the Supreme Council for Culture, including an international conference on "The Arab Woman and Creativity" which will be presided over by Mrs Suzanne Mubarak and will last for six days.
The National Specialised Councils, the country's "think-tanks", started activities on 2 October with a meeting of the Cultural Commission. A few words about the Councils are needed. The Councils were created in 1974. The members of the four councils are highly qualified experts, academicians, ex-ministers and representatives of the universities and ministries. The Councils are headed by the president of Egypt and are run by a supervisor, currently Atef Sidqi, the former prime minister who took over from Dr Abdel-Qader Hatem.
Well, this is a bird's eye view of the cultural scene which has shaken off the slumber of its hibernating season, to begin ticking anew. And so there is much to look forward to in the new season, which will undoubtedly hold many surprises as items are added on to the agenda, as companies arrive and perform, as new exhibitions programmes are announced.
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