Art mediation project in Cairo and Alexandria: Training the trainers
An Art Mediation project trained and mentored 20 youth artists and curators to deliver art workshops for children in underprivileged communities of Cairo and Alexandria, held in November 2013.
Following the success of the art mediation workshop in the DI-EGY Kids section of DI-EGY FEST 0.1, we decided to work more on the mediation of the art with youth artists and curators to help build their capacity and develop their skills as mediators. From an open call, 20 young artists and curators were selected to receive arts mediation training over the course of two weeks. The training was led by five professional Egyptian artists on their specialized subjects and mediums; Yara Mekawei for sound art, Bassem Yousri for installation art, Ahmed Hayman for photography, Mostafa El Bana for animation, and Shayma Kamel for sessions on children psychology.
The participants were taught more about each subject matter, as well as how to organize their workshop day proficiently to deliver impact.
Afterward, the participants led workshops in six different neighborhoods in Cairo and Alexandria to a total of 125 children, teaching them about digital art and how to integrate it into their lives and use it for positive change. Out of the Circle collaborated with established culture centers and NGOs already working in these areas to help identify and reach communities where the workshops would be needed and impactful; The photography workshop was in Darb 1718 with children from the Old Cairo area, the sound art workshop was in Beit El Senary center with children from Sayeda Zeinab area, the installation workshop was in Takeiba Center with children from Shobra area, and the animation workshop was in Darb 1718 with Save the Children organization which supports homeless children.
The project was supported by IFA Institute in Germany and mentored by the Arts Mediation Department of the GFZK Gallery for contemporary art in Leipzig.
Special thanks to Artists Mostafa El Bana and Dhalia Refaat for mentoring young mediators in Cairo and Alexandria.