Monday, February 27, 2012

Umm Kulthum

















Umm Kulthum died of heart failure on February 3, 1975. Her funeral was to be held at the at Umar Makram mosque in central Cairo, the site of most funerals for well-known Muslims in the city. From there, the body was to be carried by pall-bearers for a short distance to a vehicle that would take it to its final resting place. When the responsible parties realized the number of mourners who planned to come from outside Egypt, they postponed the funeral for two days, contrary to Muslim preferences but not unusual for famous people.

The crowds of ordinary Egyptians far exceeded the number anticipated, literally filling the streets of Cairo, and the funeral did not proceed as planned. The millions of Egyptian mourners took the body from the shoulders of its official bearers and bore it themselves by turns, carrying it for three hours through the streets of Cairo, eventually to the mosque of al-Sayyid Husayn, believed to be one of Umm Kulthum's favorites. There the shaykh of the mosque repeated the funerary prayers over the body and urged its bearers to take it directly to its burial place, saying that Umm Kulthum was a religious woman who would have wanted to be buried quickly in accordance with Muslim practices, and this was finally done.


http://almashriq.hiof.no/egypt/700/780/umKoulthoum/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umm_Kulthum

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Cairo street art!







































































































































































All pictures by Joke Lanz - Cairo February 2012

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Deadly clashes!
















Al-Ahram weekly:

The involvement of children in violence during ongoing clashes between protesters and police in Egypt should be addressed because it is against international norms, say local and international child rights activists.
"I have seen hundreds of children leading the fight against military and civilian policemen in violent clashes across the nation over the past months," Mahmoud al-Badawi, a lawyer and the chairman of local NGO Egyptian Association for the Assistance of Juveniles and Human Rights, told the UN news service IRIN.
Children were caught up in deadly clashes between demonstrators and military policemen guarding the Cabinet and Parliament buildings in central Cairo on December 17. Some were seen hurling stones at the police and setting public buildings on fire. Some children were injured, others were killed in the violence, which has persisted since protests began against ousted president Hosni Mubarak in February 2011.
Children were also caught up in deadly clashes near Cairo's Tahrir Square on November 23. Most of those children involved in violence live on the streets.

Monday, February 20, 2012

Hats & Noise & Books

Fresh air for fresh hats

I like the Cairo traffic

Welcome to Egypt





Wednesday, February 8, 2012

CAIRO - first week first touch

As an artist in residence I just spent my first week in Cairo:

This city is absolutely insane! All my senses go crazy!
I live Down Town just a few minutes away from Tahir Square. It's loud, dirty, dusty, noisy. The streets are overcrowded with people and traffic is sheer hell. To cross the street is almost like a suicide commando. Nevertheless I really enjoy this incredible chaos and slowly I start to walk like an Egyptian.

Tahrir Square

Former Mubarak political headquarters building

Egyptian beer, wine, whiskey

Egyptian beer (Stella) is quite OK and drinkable. So are some of the local wines. But Egyptian whiskey is definitely not to enjoy. It rather tastes of a mix of rum, cognac, caramel flavors and some chemical substances. Although it is forbidden in Islamic religion to consume alcohol beverages, many people do it privately. There are some special liqueur stores with no signs and narrow doors. It feels a bit like entering a strictly prohibited area where you get your bottles in deep black plastic bags.


Wallpaper city guide's introduction:

Cairo is hard to love at first sight. Loud, dusty and chaotic, Africa's largest city is a jumble of architectural styles bisected by the Nile and criss-crossed with Blade Runner-like flyovers. But take the time to look beyond the apparent anarchy and you will discover one of the world's most compelling metropolises, a cosmopolitan agglomeration of 20 million people that buzzes with life. Leading African capital, Arab cultural hub, strategic political centre - Cairo is many things to many people. A history incorporating occupation, cultural and political experimentation, and extremes of wealth and poverty has left its mark in the array of Cairene faces and in a uniquely diverse cityscape. Cairo is about looking beyond the obvious.


Another 17 weeks ahead!



Sunday, February 5, 2012

Charles Moneypenny Part 3

Once again Charles Moneypenny honoured Berlin with his third visit within two years and this time he even brought his lovely wife Margaret Moneypenny along: A big surprise for everybody!

Videoshots from Mr & Mrs Moneypenny's appearance at Staalplaat basement on January 28 2012:











































Thanks to: Doreen Kutzke, Rinus van Alebeek, Guillaume Siffert, Daniel Löwenbrück, Jeff Surak, Ute Waldhausen,  British Airways, HM Queen Elisabeth II

Saturday, February 4, 2012

JOKE LANZ - Münster Bern

Brand new CD on Swiss Avant-garde label 'Cubus Records' by Joke Lanz, solo turntables, recorded live at the Bern cathedral (Münster Bern) 22nd of October 2010.

Thanks to Christian Kobi & Fabio Oehrli

















http://www.cubus-records.ch/