Friday, 24 September 2010
Thursday, 23 September 2010
flota
The shopkeeper told me "sorry.. you have to buy it"
Cuz of hygienic reasons they can't sell it if someone put it in his mouth!
It costs me 4 Euro.. and so much fun! :)
Sunday, 19 September 2010
Wednesday, 15 September 2010
collaboshitting 1&2
Who?
Me, Karim & mofa!
Where?
the toilet at my place, North Amsterdam!
why?
we had a very small toilet! while sitting shitting, ur face is practically 30 cm from the door. we hanged these green sheets and we started to collabo-shitting.
the pic u see is in Mediamatic Toilet. we thought it's the best place to exhibit our shit!
Monday, 13 September 2010
Monday, 6 September 2010
I'm Bored, I'm Bored, I'm Bored in Amsterdam Noord!
When I first arrived to Amsterdam, I was intrigued by the local perception of Amsterdam Noord. It seemed to me that, although Noord was a short ferry ride away from the center, Amserdamers are inclined to perceive it as remote. The mental distance between Amsterdam Central and Amsterdam Noord seemed to be way bigger than the physical one.One evening an interesting conversation led me to the song “I am bored, I am bored in Amsterdam Noord”, which was made in the late 1970s by singer/songwriter Harry Slinger.
I asked to meet him and Harry met me to share some stories about his musical path and his experience in Noord at a time when “a song of action was needed”!
Below is an excerpt of our conversation.
M: Can you start by introducing yourself. and how you ended up bored in amsterdam noord?
H: I was born in 1949 at the Bloemgracht in the Jordaan. Eventually I started a part-time education in social studies, which led me to take a job as a youth counsellor in Amsterdam Noord. At the time everyone around me thought I was crazy for wanting to work with the ‘scum’ in Noord, but it felt like the right thing to do. After all, I was a street brat myself! And this is how I started in the youth center of de Banne Buiksloot.
Problems soon began with unemployment, the low amount of facilities, bad schools, the shipyards closed down, the Ford factory went broke, all from 1975-1980. The big problem was that there were all these separate little villages – blauwe zand, floradorp, tuindorp oostzaan, tutti-frutti neighborhood – with youth focusing all their aggression on each other rather than the government. Poor people often don't blame the rich, they blame each other.
Then some sociology students came to Noord, they started a project, JAN, Jongeren Amsterdam Noord (Youth Amsterdam Noord) meant to unite youth counsellors. But a song of action was needed. I wrote the lyrics for the song, and they were the first lyrics i ever wrote. The radio stations were crazy about it, and all of a sudden it became a hit. and then we took a flatbed boat, loaded it with local youth and the band, then went to city hall at the Oudezijds Voorburgwal, the old city hall, with it and played the song for the city counsellor, pleading for something to be done about the situation in Noord.
Back then, it was still a very leftwing time, very socialism oriented, and the city counselor at that time, Jan Schaefer, was known for: “In gelul kun je niet wonen” (you can’t live in bullshit) made it possible for change to happen. It all went a lot better, investments were made into Noord, but then Lubbers came into office, and CDA and VVD became the ruling parties, and then a lot of the changes were turned back.
M: Does the song still apply to the situation today?
H: Yes.. Well, for centuries Noord has been the drain of Amsterdam (afvoerputje) You know Floradorp? It’s at the Sneeuwbalweg, near the Floraparkbad. The area there, there used to have a wall around, like the wall israel built at Palestine. They did this because the people in there didn’t fit in socially, they were outcasts of society.
M: if you were to rewrite the song now, Do you think you’d add more complaints?
H: I would first talk to the youth and ask them what their complaints are now, maybe they’d rather use twitter. But I don’t think it will be very different. I think the worst thing possible is when as a kid you feel like you have no opportunities, that you are put at a disadvantage, that life has nothing to offer for you. but this is not only true for Amsterdam Noord, I think this would be the same in Cairo, in South Africa, South America, you name it, if young people have this feeling that they don’t have a future, then we as adults have failed.
M: How do you see the future of Amsterdam Noord?
H: Well, I think if the media are settling there, that the people who work at these media companies, these are people who are more focused outwardly. They pick up things that they see, I think this is a good development. It’s different than a bus driver who lives there.
My son is working there now at a media company, he’s an editor. And now he also wants to live in Noord, and that might be a good thing. A certain crowd is settling there voluntarily, and this is of course a very different development. Just the fact that you are interviewing and making a travel guide that is focused on Amsterdam Noord, this is of course great! I think if the inhabitants of Amsterdam Noord knew this, well they wouldn’t give a statue immediately of course, but well...*chuckles*
M: So if a young band from Amsterdam Noord wanted to make a new version of the song, would you be interested ?
H: yeah, are you going to sing it in English then?
M: No, in dutch, maybe in Arabic, ye!
H: You sing it in Arabic? *smiling*
M: I think there is an arabic scene in Amsterdam Noord. And I think if we managed to do this in a short time-
H: - It’s not a problem that I’m a jewish father?
*laughter*
M: No it’s not a problem! Have you been to the Middle East, Israel?
H: No!
M: are you religious?
H: Me? no no, I don't believe in anything! Life is beautiful, but meaningless.
M: And this is the beauty of it.
H: Yes! *laughing* I’m happy.
Sunday, 5 September 2010
Saturday, 4 September 2010
The physical and the mental distance
Interview with: Mahmoud Hamdy
By: Alberto Marchioretto
While healing himself with healthy tomato juice, Egyptian artist Mahmoud Hamdy speaks about integration, swings and the psychotherapy that Noord needs.
How do you relate as an artist to the Noord (North Amsterdam) project?
I find the project very interesting. I have never worked with mapping before and I am discovering that it can really be a stimulating process. As long as you are mapping a specific place you are not only understanding things about the place in itself, you're understanding new things about yourself. Normally, when you visit a place, you just follow random patterns of interaction. It's only when you're mapping that you become aware of being a tourist exploring new spaces and of these patterns. I'm truly enjoying letting the tourist part of myself come out to explore Noord.
What has fascinated you about Noord and its relations with the city?
Coming from Cairo, where every movement within the city takes you at least one hour, I was very surprised by the mental distance which seems to exist amongst Amsterdammers of the centre and the people living in Noord. Even though it takes you only a three minutes long ferry trip, the imaginary gap in people’s mind appears to be way bigger.
Is this psychological distance part of your project?
In structuring my project, I imagine Noord as being a child. If a child has a certain type of complexity, you ought to look at and understand its parents in order to understand him or her. In this case Amsterdam is the parent and Noord is the neglected, abused child that needs a sort of psychoanalysis. I will try to graphically represent a historical timeline that analyzes the relations within this ‘dysfunctional family’. Thus, trying to find out what the key points are of the history of the city, which have shaped the relationship between the two parts. The outcome will be a moving, hopefully interactive, picture. I don’t like static mapping, in reality maps are anything but static, because the geography changes endlessly. Nothing is fixed when it comes to mapping.
As the other participants of Noord, you have been living in the neighbourhood since June. What inspires you in this borough?
At the beginning I was attracted by NDSM, because it is made to be attractive to artists and art lovers. However, after two months living there, I really appreciate the neighbourhood Van Der Pek, where we are staying. What I really like is the peculiar vibe that you can feel. In the monotonous of the housing - all being social houses, they're all alike - people are sitting outside in their swings, children are playing, doors are open. I love it!! Also, I am appreciating it more, because I believe that in no more than 10 years, with all the renovation plans that are going on, not so much of it will remain there probably.
What do you think about the gentrification that is taking place?
More money coming in means less village and more city vibe. Hence more tourists and potential customers will come pouring in. I see why the government and businesses see it as extremely positive, but do the Dutch families need and want it? I am not so sure. Government sees it as a good thing, the local population, however, as something bad. As an artist you stay in the middle, being aware of both the points of view. Nevertheless, for this project, I am taking the side of Noord all the way and will ,therefore, go in a direction that might even offend the people of Amsterdam. Be that as it may, I really sympathize with this ‘little child’ that was raised in a dysfunctional way and I want to point out the deficiencies of its parents.
The metro is an interesting project. It has been planned following only the axes north-south, completely ignoring the east-west of Noord. It is clear that it is not meant to serve Noord people to move faster. It is only trying to trick the psychological distance 't IJ creates between the city. No more ferry, no more changing of scenery.
You hear a lot about Noord being very multicultural. What have you noticed about integration when it comes to the immigrants from the different nationalities and the Dutch natives??
It really seems as such. Lots of races and religions living together without having any mayor problem. But is there real integration? Or is there mere tolerance? Are people only able to live together as long as they are not forced to interact? Politely neglecting each other more than harmoniously sharing their lives? I wonder!!
Saturday, 28 August 2010
Monday, 23 August 2010
Tearing-down & Angling!
This location is formerly known as the Shell site. The activities on this site used to focus on research and development of technology in the oil, gas, 'green' fuel and petrochemical industries. Shell moved to a New Technology Centre, which freed up space for building a new part of Amsterdam Noord! Named after the striking tower, Overhoeks will be a place to live, work, visit, go out and enjoy leisure activities, but this is only in the future! but In the meantime, some northern kids are Angling, hoping to catch a fish!
Monday, 9 August 2010
Sunday, 8 August 2010
Saturday, 7 August 2010
Amsterdam Noord as a test lab.
The more i analyzes and explores Noord (North Amsterdam), the more i realizes that it are the conceptions & opinions people from the city center have about Noord that shape the borough.
Over the course of history, Noord was used as an experimental field on either social, industrial or commercial field.
My Project is aiming to portray the relation between Amsterdam Noord and Amsterdam center as the relation between parents and their neglected child!
Friday, 30 July 2010
Friday, 23 July 2010
Sunday, 4 July 2010
9:35P.M. Noord Amsterdam!
My mind still resisting the fact that the sun goes down every day at 10:00 PM!!
Saturday, 3 July 2010
Osama!
simona: makhmood? nice to meet you! I'm simona!
Osama: hi simona, im Osama!
simona: Osama?!
Osama: yeah!
simona: Osama as "Osama" !?
Osama: YES!
simona: Oh.. nice to meet you!
Mapping for Tourists
Opening exhibition and launch travel guide
- 4 sept 2010 Mediamatic BankMediamatic Bank, Vijzelstraat 68, 1017 HL, Amsterdam Kaart Door: Stichting Mediamatic, +31206389901, www.mediamatic.net/Stichting Mediamatic
Mapping for Tourists is an international project. Ten Egyptian and Lebanese artists and graphic designers will spend July and August living in Noord. They will map the visible and invisible locations, people and data flows, and explore the history and future of this peripheral borough. This work will result in an exhibition, and in the first ever Arabic travel guide.
Laat mij leven, illustration by Ganzeer -
"My first Noord-inspired sketch (digitally-altered), which most likely will have nothing whatsoever to do with the actual project I'm gonna do here, because I think I want to do something that involves the ferries." Ganzeer says on his blog.
met:
Bliss Street Misnomer by Lara Balaa
Poster using Fedra Arabic / Lego and Photography - Photography by Karen Kalou - Artwork commissioned by Xanadu for the launch of Typographic Matchmaking 01 (2007)
Mapping
Traditional cartography aims to generalize, project and communicate. The maps we've grown up with, contain fixed geographical, political and economical information set in a distinct time span. But whenever you visit an unfamiliar town, you soon realize the map you used to get there could never have prepared you for what you were going to encounter. There is a gap between the visual representation of a location, and the actual situation.
That's where mapping comes in. For us, mapping is about making the invisible visible. It aims to represent data flows rather than statistics. It concerns itself with psycho-geography, rather than with the representation of generalized regions and nationalities. In contrast to traditional geography, mapping has the capacity to decentralize and democratize. Mapping concerns real and imaginary experiences and usages of space. It has the power to not only show alternative views of the world, but also change local and even international policy.
Nasr City, Osama Dawod -2005 C-print, 50x70 cm
Amsterdam Noord
Amsterdam Noord used to be an execution sight. The then small island called Volewijck existed of a big well that the dead bodies were thrown in. Some would argue Noord actually hasn't changed that much. The borough is still peripheral in the Amsterdam imaginary. Despite numerous urban renewal projects, Noord has had a hard time shaking off her bad image. During the second world war many houses were bombed, only to be replaced after the war with large housing blocks. The shipping industry disappeared in the sixties, leaving thousands of people unemployed. Today, Noord has the highest rate of unemployment, the most PVV (read: extreme right political party) voters, but also the highest number of Egyptian citizens. Noord is a conflict area.
And where there's conflict, there's art. Since the nineties, artists and cultural entrepreneurs have been heading north. They have turned parts of Noord into bubbling cultural areas, attracting nomadic artists and media companies alike. Noord sees a mixture of urban, suburban and rural neighborhoods, and houses top politicians, working class single moms and young artists. Amsterdam Noord serves as a pars pro toto for The Netherlands.
Volewijck, Oud Noord -Old drawing of what Amsterdan Noord used to look like. This is the well they would hang the criminals from. Quite handy: after they died, they could cut the rope and the bodies would fall in the well. Found on the City Archive website.
Flip-side, by Ahmed Kamel -Flip-side. Graphic design, 2007. Done for: New web pick / Connection - Issue 03 “Made in Egypt” Online Magazine
The tourists
Mapping is all about allowing for different point of views and different truths to live side by side. Free from all preconceptions, who better to map Noord than a group of outsiders? Mediamatic went on a quest to find the best designers and artists to shed a new light on our favorite borough. A group of people who are critical, communicative, but also true tourism professionals. We couldn't help but ending up in Cairo, the city with the most travel agents in the world. From their northern neighbor Beirut, we took the best graphic designers the Arabic world houses.
Ganzeer
Mohammed Fahmy, aka Mofa, prefers to go by the name Ganzeer. And although the number of aliases a man has is usually no guarantee for the number of talents he possesses, there are exceptions. Ganzeer is a keen illustrator, graphic designer, writer and video artist. Based in Cairo, his art aims to express and comment on local and global issues, societies, and cultures.
Malak Helmy
Originally from Alexandria, Malak Helmy spent her teens in Doha, Qatar. At the American University in Cairo, she majored in visual arts and Islamic art and architecture. Her work concerns itself with art and public space, the urban landscape, human interaction, and audience participation and engagement. Her work has been shown in Egypt, Bangladesh and Finland.
Ganzeer at Palace of the Arts, Cairo -Shooting Up Yours, during a One-Minute Film workshop at the Townhouse Gallery, Cairo, April, 2008
Nasr City, Osama Dawod -Nasr City, 2005. C-print, 50x50 cm
Osama Dawod
Osama Dawod received his Master of Fine Arts from the San Francisco Art Institute, where he majored in photography. Politics and its effect on people have been continuing subjects in his work. He has captured the impact of climate change on Egypt, and photographed protesters at a G8 summit. Dawod has exhibited his work in his home country Egypt, as well as in Europe and Asia.
Poster on Economic Migration -The Sea Harlem Studio Fellowship: Osama Dawod, Issa Nyphaga, Susy Blu, Stefan Barbic. Picture by Stefan Barbic, found on Flickr/
Mahmoud Hamdy
Mahmoud Hamdy is a Cairo-based artist, plunging in and out of photography, graphic design, installation art and typography. After having studied animation, he co-founded the progressive design firm File Club Studio. Since 2009 he has been in charge of Dalton Maag's Cairo office, where he supervises the design of Arabic fonts. Hamdy's work has been shown at international festivals and exhibitions.
Ayman Ramadan
Originally from the Nile Delta, Ayman Ramadan moved to Cairo at the age of eighteen, and started working for Townhouse Gallery of Contemporary Art soon after. His work ranges from minimalist sculptures to photography and performances. It touches on concepts of memory and tradition, politics, class and religion.
Kareem Lotfy
Artist, musician and graphic designer Kareem Lotfy was born in Cairo. He released an album on the 100copies label, entitled Dirty Zeyda. His art work has been exhibited in various galleries in UK, Singapore, Germany, Greece and Egypt, and is inspired by mass media and dominating audio-visual culture. His work varies from glitch- and sound art, to applications and illustrations.
The Graphic Design Team
Khajag Apelian / KJ
KJ is an Armenian Lebanese who was born in the United Arab Emirates. In 2007 he received his BA in graphic design from Notre-Dame University. Two years later he received his MA in type design from KABK (Academy of Art, The Hague). Based in The Netherlands, he has worked in Dubai en Beirut, and his work has been part of publications like Arabesque, Graphic Design from the Arab World and Persia.
Lara Balaa
Lara Balaa was born and raised in Beirut. She received her BA in graphic design at the American University of Beirut, and her MA in international communication management at The Hague University. She has worked in advertising and for various creative agencies. Balaa knows her way around visual communication and Arabic type design, as well as communication research and advice.
Poster design by Lara Balaa -Al-Ghad font used on an Arabic Poster on censorship of cultural expression in the Middle East - Poster designed by Lara Balaa. Lara is one of the participating artists in Mapping for Tourists. Image from Tarek Atrissi's blog.
Facade -One of the serie C-prints by Osama Dawod, Cairo, 2005.
Lynn Amhaz
Lynn Amhaz is a Lebanese artist based in Beirut. She graduated from the Lebanese American University, majoring in Graphic Design. She is particularly interested in illustration and type. She has designed books, posters and magazines, and participated in a number of workshops, amongst which a workshop given by illustrator, author and character designer Titus Ackerman.
Engy Aly
Engy Aly is a graphic designer specialized in patterns and typography. She has participated in numerous art and design exhibitions across Africa, Asia and Europe. Her work is very colorful and fresh, and combines Western and Arabic elements.
Ahmed Kamel
Although he majored in painting at Helwan University, Cairo, in recent years Ahmed Kamel has been turning heads as a photographer. His work is highly personal: by placing his subjects in an intimate environment, his pictures deal with class, social status, and relationships. Kamel has participated in film and photography workshops, and was artist in residence in Germany and Switzerland.
Exhibitionteam
Willem Velthoven (director)
Jans Possel (director)
Femke Vos (projectmanager)
Amber Verstegen (projectassistent)
Ista Boszhard (researchteam)
Julia Luczywo (researchteam)
Tommy (website)
Alberto (reporter)
Bas van den Broeke (communication)
Dido Reijntjes (communication)
Evelyn Austin (web-editor)
Lars Wannop (graphic design)
More information
The project kicks off during Map Fest, on July 6th, 8th and 9th . Full of fresh ideas and insights, the artists will commit themselves to mapping Amsterdam Noord. The artists from the Middle East will be living and working in Noord. The various mappings will be presented in a publication and exhibition at Mediamatic Bank on 4 September, 2010.
Aufgepasst! -By Mahmoud Hamdy, A Docu-feature (Public intervention), 2005
Sunday, 28 March 2010
Street Typography and Urban Rockabilly
http://www.mediamatic.net/page/140568/en
Whether it is graphic or font design, photography or installation art, Mahmoud Hamdy’s practice probes and pushes boundaries, be that situations wherein the public and private sphere turn topsy-turvy, where audience participation and design improvisation merge, or where font is mixed with typical Cairo street credibility.Amsterdam based artist SjocoSjon is fascinated by visual means meant to be used for the worship of persons, political movements, nationalities and religions. In his more recent works he tries to play with these visual means in relation to the message behind it: tribute and glory, in the past and in the present, in politics and in commerce.
Sina Khani will surprise you with a lecture performance called "The East is the Best": on good and bad art by good and bad artists from the Middle East. It includes a funny slideshow, informative video clips & intense music samples.
Location
Mediamatic BANK, Vijzelstraat 68, Amsterdam.
Opening Hours
The Salon starts at 8.30 pm. Free entrance.
