Under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Tourism Promotion Authority, and the Egyptian National Commission for UNESCO, the “Culture-Art d’Egypte” Foundation, specialized in organizing art and cultural exhibitions, announced the launch of the fourth edition of the “Forever is Now” exhibition in the Pyramids Plateau area, in a grand celebration attended by Ambassador Badr Abdel Aati, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Mohamed Ismail, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, South Korean Ambassador Kim Young-hyun, and Nuria Sanz, Director of the UNESCO Regional Office in Cairo, Francesco Lollobrigida, Italian Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Ahmed Ghoneim, CEO of the Grand Egyptian Museum Authority, Dr. Zahi Hawass, former Minister of Antiquities, and Dr. Khaled El-Enany, former Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities.
With the participation of 12 international artists and the presence of ministers and more than 200 international public figures
The exhibition “Forever is Now” – which runs from October 24 to November 16 – features 12 international artists presenting works ranging from sculptures, installations, paintings, designs and abstract forms that reflect the influence of contemporary art on ancient Egyptian civilization and the extended relationship between them, and seek to discover exceptional meanings in ordinary things. The opening of the fourth edition of the “Forever is Now” exhibition turned into a celebration of the success that the exhibition has been able to achieve over the past years, and confirming its position as one of the global cultural and artistic events, which has become part of the tourism map in Egypt locally and globally, which was evident in the global presence this year of more than 200 international public figures, including the creative director of the Missoni fashion house, the French artist Kevin Diaz, the star of the series Emily In Paris, the Turkish artist Neslihan Atagul, the Turkish artist Burak Deniz, and a large number of international media professionals, artists and businessmen, in addition to the audience of tourists and Egyptians who were keen to visit the exhibition and listen to the artists’ ideas that they display next to the Pyramids of Giza. “The pyramids have been captivating the world’s imagination for over 4,500 years, and it is a great honor to hold the ‘Forever is Now’ exhibition for the fourth time in the presence of one of the greatest wonders of history, and for the ancient Giza Pyramids to be a meeting place for contemporary art,” said Nadine Abdel Ghaffar, founder of Art d’Egypte, in her speech.
Nadine Abdel Ghaffar: The exhibition plays a role in promoting tourism to Egypt and attracting a different and important type of tourists
She stressed that various artistic events such as ‘Eternity is Now’ play a major role in promoting tourism to Egypt and attracting a different and important type of tourists, each of whom can be an ambassador for Egypt abroad, especially since the exhibition has already become on the annual tourism agenda of many important figures worldwide.
Abdel Ghaffar added that art requires the courage to look beyond the obvious and celebrate everything that is unconventional; therefore, the fourth edition of the ‘Eternity is Now’ exhibition focuses on discovery and invites artists and visitors to discover the beauty and unconventional meanings in things.
Abdel Ghaffar pointed out that 12 artists are participating in this year’s exhibition from the United Kingdom, Italy, South Korea, South Africa, Belgium, Lebanon and France Egypt, India, Greece, Spain and Canada, stressing that each participating artist represents a unique voice that reflects his artistic vision – which merges with nature – the cultural and historical importance of the Pyramids area and what it represents as a heritage for all of humanity.
For his part, Dr. Mohamed Ismail, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, welcomed the attendees to one of the most famous and important monuments in Egypt, specifically in the Pyramids area.
Mohamed Ismail: The Supreme Council of Antiquities is a scientific institution interested in displaying the greatness of Egyptian civilization
In his speech, “Ismail” stressed the importance of the role of the Supreme Council of Antiquities and its being a scientific institution and a cultural center that works to display the great Egyptian civilization and its ancient and contemporary art, as well as the continuity of this civilization.
Dr. Zahi Hawass, former Minister of Antiquities, said that he was impressed by the presence of 12 artists from different countries of the world who came to display their works in the shadows of the pyramids, and I believe that this will be the most important event in the lives of these artists.
The former Minister of Antiquities pointed out three secrets related to the pyramids. The first is that they discovered, one kilometer south of the pyramids, the tombs of the Egyptian workers who built these great pyramids. They were equipped with everything they needed in the afterlife, such as the tombs of Egyptian kings and queens, which confirms the fact that the builders of the pyramids were Egyptians. The second secret is that a German robot found two secret doors inside the pyramid. Now there is a team from England trying to discover more secrets of the pyramid. If we discover something new, we will show it to the world so that it can see the secret rooms in the Pyramid of Khufu for the first time. Hawass added that the third secret is related to the Sphinx, whose secrets we have spent our lives trying to uncover. He and his friend Mark Lehner were able to discover four secret tunnels behind the Sphinx, and when digging under them, we found nothing but stones, which proves that the ancient Egyptians built the pyramids and not aliens as they say. “The approach of Art d’Egypte and the Forever exhibition is now in line with the provisions of the 2005 UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural and Artistic Expressions, known as the Convention on Cultural Diversity,” said Nuria Sanz, Director of the UNESCO Regional Office in Cairo. “Holding an art exhibition in the heart of the majestic Pyramids, one of the most famous World Heritage Sites, is an affirmation of the universal ability of art to transcend borders, cultures and time, and a symbol of the enduring power of creativity.”
Zahi Hawass: Displaying the works of international artists in the shadows of the pyramids will be the most important event in their lives
Sanz added that the artwork is not just a reflection of the artist’s vision, but a dialogue with the ancient past and a bridge to our future, and together we honor the eternal legacy of the pyramids while celebrating the courage of the artists participating in this exhibition.
She emphasized UNESCO and Art D’Egypte’s support this year for the Sudanese Women Artists Exhibition and ensuring that art remains an inclusive space for all, even during conflicts and emergencies. Our recent initiatives under the Convention on Cultural Diversity also explore the intersection between artificial intelligence, arts and culture, with the aim of harnessing the potential of artificial intelligence to enhance creativity and cultural expression.
The international Egyptian artist Khaled Zaki spoke about his artwork “The Race,” through which he revives the scene of ancient Egyptian chariots.
Zaki added that this work stems from his ongoing exploration of the relationships between historical narrative and societal discourse, expressing his belief in the possibility of seeing the present, and that he draws inspiration from ancient Egyptian civilization for many of his works, and is very happy to display his artwork at the foot of the pyramids, putting Egypt on the global art map and highlighting the importance of art and its relationship to history.
Greek artist Nassia Inglesis expressed her happiness to be in Egypt to display her artwork that represents how to deal with all circumstances and under any pressure, no matter what happens around you, you can do what you want. It took her about ten days to implement the work here on earth.
The Italian artist Federica Di Carlo said that she always draws inspiration for her work from ancient Egyptian culture and the myths of the gods, adding that her artwork is called “I See, I See”, and it represents lenses, each one of which sees the pyramids upside down and is inspired by the god Ra, as each tear from him represented a person, so these lenses represent people.
The Spanish artist Javier Mascaro said that he was very excited to participate in Forever is Now, and added that civilizations always affect people and we all go back to the past, and he draws inspiration for his works in general from ancient civilizations and the Egyptian civilization is the oldest and everyone drew and learned from it, but he does not have many works from the Egyptian civilization, but he has from the Nubian heritage.
As for his artwork in the exhibition “Exodus”, he said that it was inspired by the idea of immortality in ancient Egypt. Time was one of the most important factors in the ancient Egyptians’ civilization, and the piece consists of 26 boats that he assembled himself in different sizes and took several years to make. Lebanese artist Mary Khoury talked about love in her piece of art, as she completed it ten years ago and it was displayed in museums abroad, but the idea of displaying it in the pyramids and in an Arab country was the most exciting for her, because abroad they did not understand that the piece is made up of letters “B, H, B” which means “with love”. It expresses calmness, she wants everyone to sit and talk and listen to the voices of their thoughts and think about what she will leave for the new generations. She chose to be white to express peace and love that is oppressed in our societies at the present time. While artist Hassan Ragab talked about the organization of the exhibition and what Art d’Egypte does to put Egypt on the world map, as it highlights artworks and attracts interaction from all over the world, which is a wonderful thing. He added, regarding the video that was shown for him at the opening of the Cairo Arts District and at the opening at the Pyramids, that he is interested in defining the idea of identity, and this is something related to the present more than it is to the past. We are related to the past in a material way, not a spiritual and human way. He was inspired by this idea from the movie “The Mummy” by Shadi Abdel Salam. He continued about his use of artificial intelligence during the movie that there is a difference around any new technology, but we must first ask ourselves about the status of the arts; artificial intelligence is a very powerful, advanced and complex tool that we can use, and it allows the creator to break restrictions, just as photography liberated drawing before, and so on. While the Lebanese-Belgian artist Jean Boghossian said that his artwork is called “Desert Waves”, in which he talks about art and culture away from political quarrels, violence and wars. The air we all breathe is one, and we must stop killing and get closer to each other. He added that this is his first time participating in the “Eternity is Now” exhibition, so he is very happy with what Art d’Egypte is doing, as Egypt is the mother of the Arabs and the whole world, and it is natural for everyone to gather on its land.
The British artist Chris Levine spoke about his artwork, saying that it was inspired by the Great Pyramid and the idea of numbers, its internal composition, and its place on Earth, as it is close to the speed of light number, and it also has a meaning in astronomy and is linked to the center of the Earth. He added that he worked on the same dimensions but in a smaller form, as the work shows how the ancient Egyptian civilization was very intelligent and had an unimaginable development.
During the opening ceremony, Art d’Egypte presented three parallel artistic projects to the “Eternity is Now” exhibition, which are:
The work of Philippe Colbert and his imaginary excavations in the Giza Pyramids Plateau, in which he explores the patterns of digital culture and its relationship to the historical art dialogue, through the character of “Lobster”.
The third project was titled “Evanesce” by Saudi artist Dania Al Saleh, a 10-minute video clip also produced using generative AI, taking us back to the golden age of Egyptian cinema (1940-1960) to explore how these films influenced Arab societies.
Art d’Egypte
Art d’Egypte, Culturevator, opened the Cairo International Arts District exhibition – on the sidelines of the “Forever is Now” exhibition from October 10 to 30 in three main locations: Radio Cinema, The Factory, and Access Art Space, which includes for the first time the “Designers Circle” initiative, which aims to bring together artists, architects and designers under one umbrella to create a platform that enables them to create coordinated and visually attractive spaces in which their works are integrated and work in harmony.
The Cairo International Arts District also hosts a special exhibition for the works of Sudanese female artists in cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and UN Women. It is worth noting that Art d’Egypte has organized six successful exhibitions that showcased the works of more than 50 Egyptian artists: “Eternal Light” at the Egyptian Museum (2017); “Nothing Fades, Everything Transforms” at Manial Palace (2018);
Art d’Egypte has organized six successful exhibitions showcasing the works of more than 50 Egyptian artists: “Eternal Light” at the Egyptian Museum (2017); “Nothing Fades, Everything Transforms” at Manial Palace (2018); “Reimagined Narratives” at four locations on Al-Muizz Street in historic Cairo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site (2019); and three international editions of “Eternity is Now” at the Giza Plateau, one of the world’s most famous monuments, the oldest and last remaining of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, which remains to this day on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.
Published Oct 27, 2024.
