Darek Fortas is a Polish visual artist who lives and works in London. He graduated from the Royal College of Art with a Master’s in Fine Art Photography. His primary practice of photography comprises experimental studio projects and long-term fieldwork characterised by their social engagement and strong sense of the aesthetic. Darek Fortas made his first visit to Cairo back in 2017 with a view to exploring the city and its history. What most fascinated him was the contrasting roughness of the public sphere and warmth and kindness of the local people. The result was his photographic essay Nour (a common and gender-neutral Arabic name meaning ‘light’) which explores the socio-political climate of contemporary Cairo after the Egyptian revolution of 2011.
The revolution began on the 25th of January to coincide with Egypt’s annual ‘Police Holiday’ – a statement against mounting police brutality during the last years Hosni Mubarak’s presidency. Millions of protesters from a range of socio-economic and religious backgrounds demanded Mubarak’s overthrow. In the two weeks and three days for which the revolution lasted, at least 846 people were killed and over 6,000 injured.
By taking as its subject the everyday landscape of Cairo, Nour posits a heightened perception in which personal, everyday encounters are elevated into moments of universal significance. The documentary style thus forms the basis for a poetic representation, filling the aforementioned gap between the city’s raw architecture and its welcoming community. Photographs which appear to be the spontaneous result of a stroll through Cairo are revealed, on further inspection, to be meticulously choreographed shots with individual symbolic purposes.
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Darek Frotas, ‘Nour’ -
Darek Frotas, ‘Nour’ -
Darek Frotas, ‘Nour’ -
Darek Frotas, ‘Nour’ -
Darek Frotas, ‘Nour’ -
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Darek Frotas, ‘Nour’ -
Darek Frotas, ‘Nour’ -
Darek Frotas, ‘Nour’ -
Darek Frotas, ‘Nour’
Fortas has used portraits in many of his previous projects, yet in Nour he chooses to represent a city which, for all its complexity, is without people. “What does it mean to take a portrait,” he seems to be asking: “Can a portrait exist without direct human presence in front of the lens?” You certainly feel a human presence in almost every image, whether this is a collapsing armchair, drying laundry or a freshly bloodied knife. Perhaps a successfully captured still life or landscape can reflect the city’s inhabitants better that a portrait in the traditional sense
In some images the city seems to be growing and developing, in others it is rotting and decaying. Stone is a recurring element binding the series together. The stone walls from which the entire city is constructed are a record of historical memory; smaller or bigger stone blocs emerge across the city in various shapes and colours; some stones mark former areas of living. A stone symbolises endurance, stability and permanence but being a hard, durable material it can also cause destruction and ruin.
Hungry for more?For his project, Fortas draws inspiration from many great Middle Eastern artists. One of them is Beirut-based visual artist Lawrence Abu Hamdan whose work focuses on the politics of listening. Fortas’s practices are also informed by his reading which includes ‘Silk Road 1956-1974’, a collection of Milli Bau’s photographs, and the recently published ‘The Poetics and Politics of the Veil in Iran’ by his dear friend and fellow artist Azadeh Fatehrad.
Fortas’s Nour sheds light on the revolution of 2011 and its long aftermath. The subtle changes occurring behind the city’s walls far exceed the showings of the mass media. The people of Cairo are disillusioned with the high ranking officials who control the region’s assets from mineral water to public infrastructure. Fortas hopes his project will create a platform to discuss the transition of power and the modes of decentralising it. What is more, he offers important insights into the politics of photographic representation.
