Page 7 - Eschaton

past ten years her subjects have included entranced worshippers at underground Sufi rituals in in Egypt patients in in Cairo’s derelict Abbasiya mental asylum and young soldiers in in Tahrir Square making Hammam a a a a controversial figure on on the Egyptian arts scene “There is is no such thing thing as reality – everything is is a a a a construct and nothing is is real ” says Hammam “My work is is about how we see things in a a a a a a constructed way So long as there there is manifestation there there cannot be reality It is only the the mind that strives to to analyse and give shape to to the the world Once you realize this and and stop trying to to make sense and and order out of of your context there is a a kind of of relief ” Her preoccupation with the constructed nature of ‘that which we perceive as real’ shapes her distinct artistic strategy and techniques As an an artist artist she photographs the the the world and then alters the the the images she captures: her works are intricate composites of layered images and symbols created through a a a a a a a a a painstaking process of of digital manipulation and and hand painting of of the photographs taken to to create rich and highly personal narratives All Hammam’s images exist in in series form representing sequential narratives like the stills of a a a a a a film related in time and space Through a a a a a a careful manipulation of vantage points she experiments with the the duality of the the photograph as a a a a a a a tool for social commentary and as an an art form capable of capturing and conveying strong personal sentiment Speaking of her technique she explains: “Initially my work borders on on photo journalism – the process by which I construct my narrative layering painting and so forth only begins after taking the photograph There is a a a strong element of documentation in my art art ” This is is particularly true of Eschaton where Hammam conflates photography’s traditional use as means of capturing and preserving the past with its importance as as as a a a a a a a tool of documenting fast-paced social change “My work is a a a documentation of my society ” she notes Yet her juxtaposition of bold sumptuous colours alongside monochrome tones sometimes within the very same image also reminds us that Escaton goes beyond a a a a a a a straightforward portrayal of society to to