Ganzeer
# Ganzeer

Ganzeer (Egyptian Arabic: جنزير pronounced, "chain") (born 1982 in Giza) is the pseudonym used by an Egyptian artist who has gained mainstream fame in Egypt and internationally following the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. Prior to the revolution, Ganzeer's popularity was widespread yet limited to the spheres of art and design. Ganzeer's artwork has touched on the themes of civic responsibility and social justice and has been critical of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, or SCAF, which has ruled Egypt since the February 2011 resignation of former president Hosni Mubarak. Ganzeer means "chain" in Arabic. He is a regular contributor to the online magazine Rolling Bulb. Described by Bidoun Magazine as a "Contingency Artist," Ganzeer is quite accustomed to adopting completely new styles, techniques, and mediums to adapt to the topic he is tackling at any given time. The Huffington Post has placed him on a list of "25 Street Artists from Around the World Who Are Shaking Up Public Art," while Al-Monitor.com has placed him on a list of "50 People Shaping the Culture of the Middle East." He is one of the protagonists in a critically acclaimed documentary titled Art War by German director Marco Wilms. Ganzeer was also cited by German Arte as one of Egypt's highest-selling living artists today.

## Politics and Artistic Genre

Political street art was not common in Egypt prior to the 2011 revolution, however it has proliferated in public spaces in the post-revolution era. Artwork targeting SCAF in particular has surged in popularity since the revolution because, according to The Christian Science Monitor, such "anti-military graffiti is a reflection of Egyptian activists' frustration with the military rulers, who they say replaced one autocracy with another."

Regarding the genre of artistic production in which he participates, Ganzeer has said that "I'm not exactly a graphic designer, nor am I a product designer. I am not particularly a street-artist or comic book artist, nor am I an installation artist, writer, speaker, or video-maker. But I've had the chance to assume one of those roles at different periods of time and in different locations around the world." Indeed, in addition to his better-known street art, Ganzeer has produced artistic content for "magazines, events, projects and musicians." Ganzeer rejects the label of "street artist," having said that "Being called a graffiti artist is something that I'm entirely against. It's not really fair to other real street-artists because I'm not necessarily a street artist, and I don't think in street art terms."

## Artwork

Ganzeer's street art specifically has been noted for its implicit and explicit criticism of SCAF. For example, immediately after the February revolution, Fahmy created a series of murals depicting "martyrs" who were killed during the revolution, calling these "Martyr Murals". Although street art of various forms was being produced during the revolution, these murals fulfilled a public desire to see the martyrs commemorated publicly and instantly. The Egyptian government's efforts to remove these murals from public buildings led to the May 2011 "Mad Graffiti Weekend" protest action.

Ganzeer was detained on 26 May 2011, after he was reported for distributing stickers depicting the "Mask of Freedom" image that depicts "a mannequin's torso with head sheathed in a gimp mask decorated with two miniature wins". The accompanying caption reads "Salute from the Supreme Council to the youth of the loving nation."

Ganzeer has participated in many art exhibits around the globe. In 2011, he participated in a Toronto exhibition titled Cairo 20x20. The exhibition was held at The Mascot Café and Art Gallery and the theme was a look into the capital city of Egypt as portrayed by 20 contemporary Egyptian artists and designers. Each person was given a 20x20 cm canvas and asked to portray what their city meant to them, using any medium. The 20 also included Ibraheem Youssef, Ahmed Hafez, Mahmoud Hamdy, Ahmed Foula and Ibrahim Eslam.

## Comics

Ganzeer has also created a few comics, including his debut graphic novel The Solar Grid (2019).

## Exhibitions

This Should be Made Public – Goethe Institut, Cairo, Egypt – 2007 Everyday Heroes – Townhouse Onsite, Cairo, Egypt – 2007 The One Minutes – Rawabet Theatre, Cairo, Egypt – 2008 Tashkeel Gallery, Dubai, Cairo, Egypt – 2008 Urban Artists – Tashkeel Gallery, Dubai, UAE – 2008 Art Threesome – Foundation B.A.D, Rotterdam, The Netherland – 2008 Cairoscape – Uqbar, Berlin, Germany – 2008 Radius of Art – Kiel, Germany – 2008 Up Yours – Kran Film, Brussels, Belgium – 2008 Shatana International Workshop – Shatana, Jordan – 2009 Why Not? – Palace of the Arts, Cairo, Egypt – 2010 Noord – Mediamatic, Amsterdam, the Netherlands – 2010 Cairo Documenta – Hotel Viennoise, Cairo, Egypt – 2010 Meet Phool launch – Darb1718, Cairo, Egypt – 2011 Cairo 20x20 – The Mascot Gallery, Toronto, Canada – 2011 Arabic Graffiti & Egyptian Street Art – Tutankhamun Exhibition, Frankfurt, Germany −2012 Katowice Street-Art Festival – Katowice, Poland – 2012 Expressoes da Revolucaode – Contra Cultura, Porto Alegre, Brazil – 2012 Newtopia: The State of Human Rights – Museum Hof Van Busleyden, Mechelen, Belgium −2012 Theatrefestival Basel – Kaserne Basel, Basel, Switzerland – 2012 Ruptures: Forms of Public Address – The Cooper Union School of Art, NYC, USA – 2012 The Virus is Spreading – Safarkhan Art Gallery, Cairo, Egypt – 2012 Left-to-Right – Kunstquartier Bethanien, Berlin, Germany – 2012 What Are You Doing Drawing? – Nile Sunset Annex, Cairo, Egypt – 2013 Open Sesame – Apexart, NYC, USA – 2013 Face the Vitrine—D-CAF – Cairo, Egypt – 2013 (K)harya "Freedom or Shit" – Hotel Viennoise, Cairo, Egypt – 2013 Back to Square 1 – Forumbox, Helsinki, Finland – 2013 Alwan Festival – Al Riwaq Art Space, Adilya, Bahrain – 2014

Urban Art Biennial—Völklingen—2015

All American By Ganzeer—Leila Heller Gallery, New York—2015

## Publications

Arabesque – by Ben Wittner, Sascha Thoma, Nicholas Bourquin – Gestalten, Berlin, Germany – 2008 Ruins of the Future – by George Azmy and Ganzeer – Contemporary Image Collective, Cairo, Egypt – 2008 From the End – by Ganzeer – Self-Published, Cairo, Egypt – 2009 Arabesque 2 – by Ben Wittner and Sascha Thoma – Gestalten, Berlin, Germany – 2011 Wall Talk: Graffiti of the Egyptian Revolution – by Sherif Boraie – Zeitouna, Cairo, Egypt – 2012 Revolution Graffiti – by Mia Grondahl – AUC Press, Cairo, Egypt – 2013 Newtopia: The State of Human Rights – by Katerina Gregos and Elena Sorokina – Ludion, Antwerp, Belgium The Apartment in Bab El Louk – by Donia Maher, Ganzeer, and Ahmad Nady – Merit Publishing, Cairo, Egypt – 2014 Walls of Freedom – by Don Stone and Basma Hamdy – From Here to Fame Publishing, Berlin, Germany – 2014

## Presentations, lectures and debates

Ganzeer has given a number of public lectures around the world on art and design. These presentations are often described by participants as semi-performative, high on humor, very informative and ultimately engaging.

Art-Threesome – Foundation B.a.d, Rotterdam, Netherlands – 2008 Pecha Kucha Night – Off Corso, Rotterdam, Netherlands – 2008 Going Dutch, Habibi – Contemporary Image Collective, Cairo, Egypt – 2008 Medrar's 14th Open Meeting – Medrar, Cairo, Egypt – 2009 Visual Pollution in the Middle East – Nuqat Conference, Kuwait – 2010 TweetNadwa – Tahrir Square, Cairo, Egypt – 2011 Cairo Institute for Human Rights, Seminar No. 18 – Cairo, Egypt – 2011 Culture in Action: A debate between Ganzeer, Guy Sorman, and Rachida Triki – European Culture Congress, Wrocław, Poland – 2011 Internews Conferences – Portemilio, Lebanon – 2011 Social Media & Street-Art – Sanaye3 House, Beirut, Lebanon – 2011 Forum Liberation de Lyon – Lyon, France – 2011 Horreya Tour – Berlin, Hamburg, Bremen, and Cologne, Germany – 2012 Street-Art and Political Protest Culture – Right-to-Left, Berlin, Germany – 2012 The War of Art / HIAP Talks – Helsinki, Finland – 2013 Re:Public – Kiasma Museum, Helsinki, Finland – 2013 Seminar: We Are Open – Checkpoint Helsinki, Kiasma Museum, Helsinki, Finland – 2013 Art & The Political – D-CAF, AUC, Cairo, Egypt – 2014 Alwan Festival Talks – Al Riwaq Art Space, Adilya, Bahrain – 2014

