Revolutionary Failure, 2021

Ezz Monem

12 - 25 Jan 2021

In response to the tenth anniversary of the Egyptian revolution, Monem revisited the images he made during the eighteen days of protest in Cairo in 2011. A selection of them were rephotographed, then an acid was used to erase the emulsion from the film surface before the photograph was manually developed. The results were located between rephotographs and deliberate erasures.

The images marked the passing of the revolution from lived experience into the realm of historical event. They reflected a process of remembering paired with an attempt to forget. Monem’s generation rose up to transform their greatest frustrations into their highest hopes. As they met their limits and witnessed the catastrophe that followed, the uprising became their greatest disappointment.

A closing event was held on 25 January at Noir Darkroom, in which a selection of other related works was exhibited in the gallery.