Caramblogage

RANT: On Fear, and a haircut

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 10:02:00 +0000

So yes, I am in Egypt.

I had hoped to write few posts, beginning with how air you breathe has changed and how you notice it the moment you leave the airport and a new abundance of hope.

The latest shift in the wind, caused by the killing of about 75 people after a football game, has me writing about fear instead.

There are be those who will try to crush hope through fear. The dominant undercurrent of many conversations has been fear. I have heard of violence, murders, kidnappings, bank robberies. People have spoken of how thing were safer under the old regime, of how such things used not to happen. Which is true, in part. Maybe they were not covered before. Maybe there was a police force in place, who, matter how ineffective, corrupt and undertrained, did keep some measure of land order in place. Maybe things were better. But why did they get worse?

Let's go back couple of weeks. The emergency law was lifted, a piece of very good news. With a single caveat. In case of thuggery, it will be reinstated. From what I hear, there has been of of thuggery going on lately. Even if it not all planned, or factored into the current state budget, it is being allowed to happen. The scarcity of police the streets is noticeable, and their absence at the football games is much discussed.

Walking through an Zamalek this morning, everyone was holding a newspaper. The word on the street was naturally about yesterdays events. The difference between observing from afar and actually being here is seeing, and above all emphathising with the reaction. Long, distraught faces everywhere, anger in many eyes, compassion and sympathy mixed in there. Trying to make sense of what I was myself feeling, I went to get a haircut. I didn't have much to say, as Amr cut my hair much shorter than I had asked.

However, the halting conversation between him and the cleaner was a revelation into how the perception of media and how closely, even dutifully, scrutinise the content delivered to them. "Even before the game, they were showing us violent pictures. And then the pictures of the event itself... they are tying to scare us. There was a university professor on television, he was saying it was all planned..." he went on in this vein for a while. I was impressed, both by how much media he had watched and of his critical eye towards it.

I suppose he is afraid as well. On the way back, I was talking to a friend about what I was seeing, narrating expressions, trying to analyse and project the big picture. Zamalek is empty. People are afraid. Will emergency law be re-instated? Will they now want the police force back, in spite of the general mistrust felt towards them? Is all of this part of an organised campaign of fear? In absence of bread, are the people now also to be deprived of circuses?

Apart from yesterdays happenings, I have seen much that gives me hope: Open Mike sessions, Plays, exhibitions, arts and open discussion on the streets. Individuals, active and emotionally tired, are working hard in many ways to preserve the freedoms and self-respect that many individuals have discovered through the revolution.

Which bring me to a question I feel needs to be asked: What shape would a campaign of hope, not necessarily related to revolutionary activities, look like?

MGW Berlin: Why

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 20:37:00 +0000

The Echo and the Origin.

One of the reasons Mad Graffiti Week in Berlin is a good idea is the inspirational value of of a good bombfest. Slightly edgy, just a bit illegal, it allows Egyptian artists living in Berlin to finally join in where they have been missing out and bring their work where they feel it belongs- into the public space.

This comes back to a slogan that I hear every now and then "Reclaim your City". Cut off from home and with no possibility of immediate return, many who live here feel useless and it is important to be able to take direct action in what is a volatile and sensitive time in the Egyptian uprising. It is important to be able to create your own space, your own personal piece of revolution abroad. It is about leaving a lasting impression on your surroundings and feel that you have done your bit.

Most of the visual artists I know in Berlin would go to demonstrations and silently hold up a slogan, or a piece of artwork, feeling that written words speak louder than words screamed at the wall (see also globaltahrir). A clear and legible message will be better received than a slightly garbled youtube video of a demonstration. Berlin having become a strange extension of Cairo (or an Egyptian city of your choice), artists living here are happy to join in this act of vandalistic self- expression.

It is also, quite naturally, a show of support for the people in Egypt, and a reminder to the local authorities that if they do anything in regards to the country that does not jive, there are those who will hold them to account.

Our message is, as mentioned previously, bilingual and focused at a German audience as well. For instance, this is an opportunity to confront the German citizen with the fact that many of the Guns used in Egypt (and other uprisings) are produced by that famous paragon of Teutonic Arms production, Heckler and Koch. We cannot begin to guess what kind of money is flowing behind the scenes, or what kinds of other weapons are being exported. For a country that officially puts human rights as highly on its agenda as Germany, this is nothing short of betrayal of principle.

We have heard very little condemnation of the acts of the SCAF and affiliates here. In stead the media picture presented to us is one of a country slipping into disrepair and self-abuse.

"This is an appeal to save lives" says one Ganzeer / Mo Fa.

It's that too, but it's also an attempt to retain our sanity and engage in some direct, positive action in stead of just reblogging the latest news or talking about what we can do from here – a human rights congress sounds a bit useless right now, sorry OMRAS.

We shouldn't forget the "save lives" bit though. This kind of activity, which it appears all of Cairo is engaging in, allows people to claim their surroundings as their own, something no amount of turpentine or cleaning crews can take away from them "I am here, I am proud to be here, and this is a sign that I support this uprising."

And so, onwards into the night.

Mad Graffiti Week OMU

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 11:06:00 +0000

Hello and welcome back to the bilingual design section of this blog.

And to Mad Graffiti Week, Berlin as well.

In these very political weeks of graffiti, the message is more or less everything. In order to convey and sometimes adapt the message so that it can be understood or adapted to the local lingo. OMU in German means Original mit Untertiteln, which means subtitled version.

Trouvé sur les rues de Berlin

7'altak Floul?

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 12:53:00 +0000

One of the Grassroots Projects from Egypt that I think needs to be mentioned and supported is the 7'alti Feloul Campaign.

Aimed squarely at giving individual citizens the tools to spread awareness to the Remnants (Feloul) who still support the NDP/ Mubarak regime, through videos documenting the misdeeds of said system.
I was asked, almost by accident, to develop a logo for them.

In Berlin, with Hanaa el Degham, we came up with a couple of ideas, documented below.

Stories from an Imaginary Revolution: Sing!

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 11:02:00 +0000

Page one of Sing!

In Arabic…

All you lovely Arabic editors out there: Please correct, my written is awful.

Stories from an Imaginary Revolution

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 10:06:00 +0000

While many films have been made about the Egyptian revolution, many of them with very similar names, and many books have been written about it, very little actual storytelling seems to have happened, stories that leave realism behind and talk about the underlying spirit, or the meta of events, adding imagination to politics and a soul to culture.

I wrote my first short comic book script in years yesterday. 1
It's called "Sing!" and attempts to thematise the power of music and song in resistance. It may fall flat on its face, but I'm gonna draw it anyway, let's see where it goes. It helps that the characters took mental shape as I was writing. So, don't expect to see much of me in the next days.

The title is: Stories from the imaginary Revolution 1, implying that more are to follow. The concept is not exclusive to me and intends to bring together more than one imagination, so if anyone feels like joining in, please do.

Milyoneyya Far3oneyya

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 11:39:00 +0000

This is a reaction to January. What still bothers me is the lack of Pharoe… Maybe someone will come up with one.

Updated version to follow.

Avoiding the Media

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 12:26:00 +0000

In an attempt to avoid all media on Friday, I stayed at home and worked on a website. The day after, in spite of rather pressing social commitments, a friend kidnapped me and took me to a Schumann (Bert? I may have the wrong Shu here), mostly to keep me from going crazy from watching the current round of violence in Egypt.

Having missed an office party, clashes in Egypt, a Tsunami in the Philippines and dire warnings for the Eurozone, some festivities in Wedding, I woke up one morning feeling the world was, in its own weird way, alright. My parents have flown to Cairo and are happily on holiday there.

Except, as it turns out, during my self-imposed media blackout, civil war seems to have erupted in Egypt. My only indication of this was a comment by a friend "Why is Goldfish posting so many horrible pics on Facebook?" This morning, scanning my feeds, I read of "clashes", "fires", "military attacks protesters", "Prime Minister denies violence". What happened in the interim of 24 hours?

24 hours after that, the picture is murky and apart from those dear to me in Egypt, I now can worry about those dear to me who have travelled to Egypt for Christmas, or work. On Facebook, the rumor mill has started again, news of killings, burnings and violence towards women is being posted by the second. The Egyptian Scientific Institute is in flames, no-one quite sure who started the fire. Demonstrators rushing in seem to indicate that the fire was laid deliberately by forces rumored to be soldiers.

The best advice for demonstrators I have heard in the last few hours is that, as the military is protecting the Property of Egyptians, Protesters should act like Property to escape violence. The admin of the SCAF site, in an act of amazing verbal bravery (and command of the Arabic keyboard) just posted this on the official SCAF page. Whether it's a hoax, hack or it really happened, the message is clear :

أدمن الصفحة : يَسْقُطْ يَسْقُطْ حُكّمْ العَسْكًر

to which I would like to add this snippet from globaltahrir (A very idealistic name, yes):

http://globaltahrir.tumblr.com/post/13870608342/berlin-26-11-2011

Seldom have people felt more connected to events while watching the from afar. About any conversation I've had today was about what we can do. From afar, in the heat of events, all that can be done is lend what support can be given and make sure the voices are heard. The echo may be as important as the origin, the warm bodies risking their lives. It is important, once in a while, to be reminded, amidst the rapid and unceasing developments that there is a goal to all this.

What from here lies before?

A call with Cairo reassures me that normal life continues, yet that the anger, expressed in smoke and death on Tahrir and other places. What exactly is happening is difficult to understand from afar. Apart from protests, numbers and violence, not much is being reported in the media.

Amidst all of this, the picture of a girl in a blue bikini. Bikinis are very much in fashion these days.

The message that is being broadcast is very much one of violent protesters being confronted by an overpowering mass of violent security forces. It does not help to say that they are exceeding their orders, or that all this is not intended. This is a discouraging narrative, but one that has to be overcome, maybe by a return to a more light-hearted and creative approach to a civil uprising.

It is, amongst all the chaos, important to know that even though we are seeing brutal images, many people are all right, and active, each in their own way. Lack of trust, disbelief fact and rumor seem to have created an atmosphere in which anything can and will happen. So wait. And demonstrate your support.

PS: The media blackout was imposed in order to generate some media of my and our own. Click!

Preak Sneview!

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 23:22:00 +0000

That's about it, for now.

Spring Lessons: Tahrir Berlin | تحرير برلين

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 21:16:00 +0000

Tahrir: Berlin | تحرير برلين collects the opinion of protesters on the streets of European cities.

We start out with a collection of opinions, spoken at a demonstration against the Egyptian Military Regime in front of the foreign office in Berlin on the 26th of November 2011.

It is difficult to watch a revolution happening from afar, especially when your heart is very much rooted in your home country. In stead of shouting at the wall, a cameraman was in place to record the opinions of the individual protesters.

The need for documentation is one of the things we learned from spring. Welcome to winter.

This is an initiative by Spring Lessons, supported by OMRAS.

Spring Lessons: Egyptians in Germany to all revolutionaries in #Tahrir, #Egypt

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 17:03:00 +0000

Part of Spring Lessons is not just documentation, but active participation in giving people a voice and finding simple, yet effective ways of doing so.

In this case, noticing that demonstrations in Berlin consisted mostly in a lot of shouting at walls, a team went out to give the participants in a demonstration in front of the German Foreign Office in Berlin the possiblity to relay their statements directly to Egypt. We shot about 35 15- second segments, recording the name and demand of the individual interviewee.

Thanks to the hard and wonderful work of Kareem Kandiel, who shot and edited this. Marianne Wagdy, translator extraordinaire is responsible for the subtitles.

I hope other Egyptians across the world will take up this idea and emulate it.

What are the Spring Lessons?

Spring Lessons / دروس الربيع

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 01:24:00 +0000

This is to say that this now exists:

Spring Lessons / دروس الربيع Initiative
is an international network for socio-
cultural events

----------------------------------------------------

Description

We are an international network of artists, academics, curators, designers, filmmakers, journalists, musicians, storytellers, teachers and others who support, initiate and carry out cutural projects that further an understanding of freedom of speech & space, human rights and a global dialogue.

Info

In the wake of the uprisings in Arab countries, the Middle East, Gulf states and MENA region, an incredible wealth of new images, sounds and sensations have reached the world.

In turn violent, beautiful, moving or shocking, this input has also generated an unprecedented artistic and cultural activity and international recognition for artists and cultural activists from the region. The uprisings have also inspired people worldwide to re-examine the situation closer to home and to look for new solutions to problems either forgotten or hitherto ignored.

The Spring Lessons Initiative seeks to create forums in which cultural activites and initiatives can be presented and put in context through exhibitions, discourse and installations. Photographs, films, spoken words sung, shouted, cursed and whispered demonstrate the ways through which people tell their stories. They are finding new ways to help others, and themselves.

Through arts, culture and media cooperations, it aims to further the global discourse on social justice, human rights, and democracy.

Mission

The main interest of the Spring Lessons Initiative is to create a wide network of people involved in the sociocultural field and to help with the conception, organisation and realisation of such projects.

In addition, we are planning a series of projects and events throughout 2012 and 2013 which will focus on the Middle East, MENA and Gulf States setting current developments and long-standing conflicts into (artistic) context.

Joining

JOIN US We are looking for support from cultural actors, activists and artists with a specific interest in such projects. Should you be interested in our ongoing activities or wish to suggest a project, please contact us via this page.

WE SUPPORT YOU We can provide you with our own expertise and experience, with conceptional, logistical and organisational support for international projects, with our backers list and wide networks, and first and foremost with innovative, interesting projects to join.

Rant: On voting in Egypt

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 19:45:00 +0000

Voting in the Egyptian Parliamentary elections has become a very complicated issue.

Beginning with about 50 parties, with daily additions and subtractions from the rolls, continuing with the three-month process of electing those parties to office across provinces, combined with continuing violence in Egyptian cities, at a lull now, result in an unstable mixture of emotion, politics. international concern and personal stories.

A clash of voices and jokes about teargas and mustard gas being used to subdue protesters, calls to boycott the elections, Egyptians abroad having to vote until Saturday getting notice of it today, Islamist losing in popularity, the appointment of a new Prime Minister by the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (or SCAF, for those tired of writing about them), the formation of a National Salvation Government.

We remember January as we take to the streets in Berlin, in more than one way. It's cold and our toes are freezing off as we stand in front of the Egyptian Embassy and run into familiar faces that represent the microcosm of the Egyptian Society Abroad, and some unexpected arrivals. As I arrive, a fight has broken out between two people, the causes of which, even though unclear, resulted in spitting on faces, an act that is very derogatory to say the least. Somehow an apology is promised and not delivered, which results in a near report to the police.

Apologies delivered the situation seems appeased. We find something out that evening: The doors of the Egyptian Embassy are open to those who ring.

A day later, OMRAS gets a reply from the Ambassador to a letter we sent to him about the rights of Egyptians abroad in these elections. In fact, after it came to light that a sizable number of the expat community wanted to vote in Berlin, the embassy opened its doors 24 hours to allow the largest possible amount to vote. Some confusion ensued over registration, why you had to state your address (again) and how to vote in a foreign constituency if you were not there at the time of the vote. By mail, it turns out.

After a demo on Saturday, in the cold in front of the Foreign Office, with about fifty other Egyptians, we find that the demographics of Tahrir can be recreated in Berlin. The liberals, those representing political Islam, the middle, the media-savvy youth were all present. From chants to testimonial videos, songs of bilady, jokes, some photographs. The Egyptian flag omnipresent on about 50 square metres of Berlin territory. The pain was palpable as the people screamed their hearts out. So was the unity for a cause that finally came to light that day.

As the wall of the German Foreign office is not supposed to be the recipient of those outcries, we recorded some video statements to be able to send them out and post them online. ~~I'll post more about those as they come.~~
Here is the Arabic version of the video:
Meanwhile, the electionnaire is being used and used, hopefully helping some people with their indecision. As I write this, close to 90 000 persons have used it, proving that, if anything, it is a tool that has found an audience that appreciates it. Some minor improvements have gone online, hopefully aiding and simplifying the process.

As to the elections themselves, here is a link why Egyptians, wherever they are, should not boycott those elections. And here is one why you should.

They're happening tomorrow and from my point of view, there is no reason not to vote. I'm not going to go into the details of the should & should nots of this election as I cannot participate in it and thus am keeping my opinions to myself, unless asked directly.

Tomorrow will, once again, be a new day in Egypt.

The Egypt Electionnaire PT 1: Design

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 20:27:00 +0000

Did I ever mention that I've been working on a project I actually grew to love as I understood more about it?

The Egypt Electionnaire is, for me, a very political project.

Based on a July survey of the parties on the electoral Roll for the November Parliamiamentary elections in Egypt by ANHRI & MICT, it asks the user 29 questions. These were asked of the parties during the survey. It then calculates the best suited party for the voter according to concurrences in answers to the questions and displays the result. It's that simple, really.

The making of it involved some reflection on the circumstances in Egypt, the flow of thought in the country, the political and social currents. And finally arriving to the conclusion that if people are to vote, they should be able to inform themselves from independent sources and be offered assistance before making their choice of party.

By the making of the electionnaire itself hangs a tale, which will be told. In a bit of time.

Before we enter into the actual process of making the site, let me show off some graphics.

This is a project I inherited, from Ron Heussen of Realbrands, who laid the groundwork for what was to become the website, so big props to him and them for setting it up. A lot of my stuff for this is based on their work and it was fun, finding ways to adapt to their style.

Before we start, the Banner:

Anyone who feels like it can, of course, use this on their site, if they link it to the Electionnaire at http://egypt.electionnaire.com/.

Next, the Logo process, again based on the Branding established by the Logo for Ikhtiartunis. It is a process of subtle changes:

And some placement. Note how the logo shrinks in each step:

Now, there came a point in the Project at which it was suggested we replace the invisible grey buttons with large orange buttons that everyone would notice. So here are some icons:

Here endeth the process for now. I have grown to like this tool a lot, both for the principle of it and for the people involved in making it. Again, I recommend this to anyone participating in the Egyptian Elections and hope to be involved in the survey for the presidential elections.

My Other Story…

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 11:32:00 +0000

… is actually Saras story, an installation & Event on at the Maximilliansforum in Munich until the Beginning of December.

I just provided some Arrows for pointed storytelling.

Palästinah — El Flyer!

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 13:06:00 +0000

Flyers printed. 'nuff Sed.

Event: Funkenschlag / Flächenbrand

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 15:30:00 +0000

A project I'l like to recommend here is the exhibition and process workshop Funkenschlag / Flächenbrand at the OKK in Wedding (Prinzenallee 29, near u8 Pankstr), featuring Art and contributions from many Arab countries

Have a few unedited pics of what it looked like a couple of days ago. It probably changed completely by now.

Libya: Bend Brincken's Photo expedition to Benghazi

Hana Gegham's Painting. Worth seeing in the flesh.

Ahmad Kamels Installation on Egyptian Revolutions.

Also: The Egypt day is on the 13th. More to come.

IGAF: The return of — a meta post.

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Sat, 22 Oct 2011 00:20:00 +0000

Caramblogage is a strange beast that has found its way back to its roots in some fashion.

When we started out, sometime around 2004, I was fresh out of English Lit, a freshman in graphic design. At the time, a place was needed to put down words on screen, no matter who would read them. So, this was the place to put them. An irregular series called Is Goodness a Fashion documented random thoughts on technology, advertising, society and, in it's fourth installment, ecology.

The aim was to explore, mostly for myself, current topics I felt I should know a thing or two about. At the time, mostly due to age, I felt that I knew enough about anything to write at length and in detail, about everything.

Now, due maybe some maturity acquired in the process of aging, I try and research what I write about before I write it. That explains the current nature of this beast: research is hard and time-consuming work. So in stead of researching an entirely new topic every few weeks, I made a decision that would affect the blog and the content posted on it for a while: I would post stuff that I was doing here. You've seen the sketches, the books and the films, the aborted project fetuses and the occasional poster or font.

In other words, this became the blog that documented the work of the guy behind it, offering little opinion and much exposition of projects that mean the world to me while I make them. They still do.

This year has been full of change, both personal and global, starting out with the Egyptian revolution and not ending. The most recent events that have global impact I can think of are the death of Steve Jobs, the occupy movement and Muammar Kathafi being shot in his hole. And ongoing, of course, as events unfold.

One personal change this year brought for me is a cause. Which sounds strange as I write it, but is the closest I can come to describing a series of realisations that bring me where I am now. With the Egyptian revolution, I was forced to re-examine my long-held position that one man cannot change the world, that passivity, though generally more pleasant, was no longer an option. In the words of Amelie Poulain, I decided "de me meler des affaires des autres".

Earlier posts may have given some indication of what was to come. So yes, a graphic designer in times of revolt can be useful in his own way, especially when they stick to what they know and design pretty flyers for demos, right? Or turns his attention to street art.

Maybe, but not this one.

PalästiNah / ‎فلسطينّا from www.slooma.com on Vimeo.

Palästinah, that project I have been going on about for a while (and will continue to do until it's over), proved something I had my suspicions about: Put together brilliant people with good ideas in a room and something great will come out of it.

Look at the website in it's current state and compare that to what it had been at the outset – a photo exhibition in the atrium of a theatre – to what it has matured to in a few short weeks, an event with theatre, dance, readings and film, not to mention it's own, gorgeous trailer, shot and edited by Selim Harbi as part of a series of interviews with Palestinian kids living in Berlin.

All this is not a testament to perfect planning (useful) , good contacts (they help) or even hard work (it is). Rather, I like to think of this as the first step on a journey that started with a simple idea. Then we ran with it, each bringing our specific talents and personality to this project. Out of this and a few happy coincidences became what is going to happen in November.

At the same time, other things are beginning to happen, testament to the endurance and patience of those involved, knowingly or unknowingly, in future projects. It also says a lot about the passion and a new courage to express yourself, and give others a platform for expression when it counts, that is felt by many in Germany, no matter where their roots lie.

To name a few now: A second installment of Freisprechanlage, which Sara Duana Meyer is planning as we speak. Palästinah MKII (as I call it), a slightly expanded version of the programme on now. Voices from the Revolution by Heba Amin, currently one of my favourite people due to her keen understanding of processes that happen in a head when you combine sounds and pictures in space (entre autres). And a few other things I have to keep under wraps for now, but that should materialise sooner than expected.

What unites most of these projects is the format. They seek not to display, but to explore and, in the process, lead the viewer to a new understanding of the situation and people in countries not close to home through arts, culture and direct engagement with the subject matter.

They aim to create a context for pictures you see in the news, for processes that have repercussions far from their epicentre, as proven by the Occupy movement, which is inspired, I believe, in part, by what is happening in Tunis, Egypt, Bahrain, Morocco, Libya and Syria – but that is another post, and one for another day.

They also aim to make the Arab world, or the worlds of Arabs, more accessible to European audiences, familiar with the broad strokes of life in the Bilad (countries), but not with the individuals or groups that make up that life. Any country is its own experience.

Speaking of which, I was recently in Hamburg with OMRAS to attend a workshop organised by the Yalla Initiative, a network of people interested in supporting the Arab Spring (or whatever you wanna call it) from Germany. We now have plans too. Put brilliant people in a room…

Which brings us neatly back to IGAF. You may have noticed a marked change in content since the beginning of the year.

More to come.

El Modulor modular!

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 18:17:00 +0000

One of my favourite expensive shops for materials, pens and Anything I Could Ever Think I Needed For Anything shops is supporting Palästinah!

Hooray for Modulor!

Of course, also to be found here.

Hmm… I think this strange feeling may be excitement. To be…

فلسطنا – Now online!

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 09:04:00 +0000

I'm slightly exhausted (though generally ebullient) to announce that the Palestine exhibition has gained a web presence! It will develop over the course of the next few weeks as we push towards the November Programme, so watch that space!

You can find it here.

Click the like button and see what happens.

PalästiNah — Inherited Hope (in English)

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 10:43:00 +0000

English Version of what we've been saying in German:

——————————————————————————————————
Since 1948 three generations of Palestinians have endured the bitter taste of enforced exile. 40% of these refugees are under 15 years old. The exhibition PalästiNah — Inherited Hope documents the twisted normality of their everyday life.

The pictures on display were taken by Palestinian refugee children, Maya and Nadia Graßmann and Selim Harbi. They document the current situation in Rashidiya, Sabra and Shatila.

This event is supported by OMRAS, the Organisation for Human Rights in Arab Countries.

Art Direction: Caram Kapp

With special thanks to Johannes Moll
——————————————————————————————————
VERNISSAGE
September 30^th 2011 | 18:00
Theater Aufbau Kreuzberg
Prinzenstraße 85 F

——————————————————————————————————
LINKS:

— Selim Harbi: http://slooma.com/

— OMRAS: http://omras.net/

— TAK : http://theater-aufbau-kreuzberg.de/
——————————————————————————————————

To this, I will add that the Vernissage is the beginning of a programme that shall develop until November.

Look to our Facebook Event for updates!

(FYI: The German translates into Palestine: Close By, the arabic into Our Palestine)

Palästinah: Inherited hope

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 08:51:00 +0000

It's work in rapid progress.

Moving from one name to the next and the design progresses with it.

Pictures soon.

Opening on the 30th. Here.

Rant: On two Walls

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 07:26:00 +0000

Today, I stumbled across this on twitter:

And off we go:

While I have a lot of admiration for both the comic book and the movie, V is a step back in my opinion. V is a symbol for anarchy and bringing down a corrupt system through any means necessary.

Yes, V is an inspiration to everyone in that he will go to any length, and risk any collateral damage to achieve his goal of liberation. He will bomb, play music, usurp the media and established structures to further his aims. Some of this is a good idea, other methods result in unexpected results. A good way to destabilise above structures and send a shock through the public conscience and awareness of the effectiveness of the oil that keeps the gears going somehow.

What is worrying about V is that, a path s opened through such action, which may lead to a fundamental shift in society and the way it is governed, or governs itself. The underlying ideals justify the action and society is left to get on after the ultimate sacrifice is made for the Cause. This neatly absolves our protagonist of all guilt and removes him except as a lasting symbol of resistance and heroism

This little narrative twist is what makes V such an intelligently constructed story. It is also what makes it a useful parable of resistance, not rebuilding. V is the symbol of one man, outside the system, acting alone to better a society that must be corrupted enough to resort to any means to bring it down. But after that, after the moment when everyone has united on the square and taken off their anonymous masks, what happens then?

V is gone. And has left the public independent, unafraid and free, but also slightly clueless as to what to do next with their lives. Nice fireworks, though. Tea?

Number two:

This very moving gesture, which occurred in Berlin on the 19th of September 2011:

I don't know. Even though one cannot complain about the execution and completion of this work of art, and it is part the history of an ongoing revolution, it somehow fails to provoke any emotion in me. In stead of the gesture, I notice those behind it and think to myself "Why them?". Maybe I should have been present at the unveiling and asked exactly that question.

Khaled Said on a piece of the Berlin Wall is one of those ideas that sounds great and should be inspiring in theory. Symbols of oppression, dictatorship and corruption, finally freedom both, painting the oppressed on the oppressor and commemorating the solidarity the artist and those that commissioned the piece feel, this artwork should be a hit on all levels.

In stead, it does not feel relevant, or particularly helpful to the uninformed. You are left with a glimpse of one face associated with the the uprising. And nothing to back it up. No real lasting impact. While writing this, I've been looking into Khaleds painted eyes for about half an hour and not changed my mind about it.

Everyone involved in this has my respect, as does the subject of the art and its theme. Having said that, meh.

The picture above, and more on the project can be found here.

Sketching Palestinian DNA

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 08:32:00 +0000

Above, you can see the working title and result of real life events:

A couple of weeks ago, I was approached by a couple of great people with an idea that needed to be developped into a concept. The idea was an exhibition about Palestinian life and childhood as a refugee in Lebanon.

In addition to this, we shall be staging a programme revolving around the theme in November, featuring dance, poetry, video and of course the photos.

Selim Harbi you may know. He had a starring role in the Haus der Kulturen exhibition in which we presented pictures from the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt.

Nadia and Maya Grassmann were in Lebanon in 2009, where they gave children analogue cameras to play with. We will be showing their perspective on childhood as a palestinian refugee.

The photo exhibition will be launching on the 30th of September at the Teather Aufbau Kreuzberg during their opening day do. Details to follow, as is a less sketchy version of events.

The picture used here is by Selim.

Newerish calling card inbetween two versions update.

noreply@blogger.com (Caram) — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 17:37:00 +0000

Final Result:

------------------------------------------------------ Process -----------------------------------------

My webpage is a constant source of entertainment and finger-training for me.

Upon realising that it served me best as a calling card, that is what caramk.com has become.

This one is definitely a work in progress. Oh and look! It tweets. Nonsense. With vigour. The webpage that is.

UPDATE I don't like it. Back to the drawing board.

UPDATE II: The layout wasn't bothering me as much as the colour combination. Hence:

now with added circles!

UPDATE III: This will keep me happy for now.

Now to optimise prime.

Update IV:

Still with added circles and blingy things (I've recieved some complaints about them, but for now they just feel right) and a few hidden functions within, this will rest for now. Also hooray for social integrationalisms!

That was fun. Good night.

PS: It does say illustrator somewhere on that page…