Photopia, Cairo’s photography hub and school, is preparing for the second edition of Cairo Photo Week (CPW), which is taking place between 11 and 20 March 2021. The event is being hosted at two large venues, including the newly reopened Rawabet Theatre, a prominent art space in the Egypt capital.
A bigger number of exhibitions, discussions, and workshops are included in the upcoming programming, aiming to reach a larger scope of audiences, whether physically in the locations or through dynamic virtual programming. The theme of this year’s festival is Depth Off Field because of its focus on “expanding the photographic eye and mind across many fields of photography, encouraging photographers and image-makers to widen their artistic, technical and business perspectives”, according to a statement by the festival.
Under the larger theme, the event will be broken up into many smaller events, each with its own unique theme and purpose. “The festival will constitute 70 per cent learning and 30 per cent exhibitions, open studios, photography services and networking events with speakers, lecturers, and local, regional, and international exhibitors who will present the various workshops,” Marwa Abou Leila, co-founder and managing partner of Photopia says.
In 2021, it brings together the work of more than 100 photographers to be showcased across 11 exhibitions under different themes and styles. One exhibition, Photo Kegham of Gaza: Unboxing, features archival shots of the Gaza strip with some photos dating back to the 1800s. One of the festival’s most anticipated activities is a workshop hosted by award-winning American documentary photographer and Guggenheim fellow Maggie Steber. Another workshop will be hosted by renowned Bangladeshi photojournalist Shahidul Alam.
The work of several prominent videographers will also be showcased at the much anticipated Cima exhibit, which will include stills from some of Mena’s most prominent films, such as The Blue Elephant.
While the festival’s exhibitions are open to visitors free of charge, entry to talks, workshops and masterclasses, which are really the centrepiece of the programme, costs 650 Egyptian pounds ($41.3) for the all-access ticket and 150 Egyptian pounds for a day pass. In light of the pandemic, there will also be a virtual pass that allows attendees to live-stream the festival’s events, including the talks and workshops. This costs 350 Egyptian pounds.
CPW’s first edition took place in 2018 and hosted over 80 Egyptian, regional, and global lecturers and saw the participation of 1,500 visitors, photographers, videographers, cinematographers, and image-makers. Although the second edition is taking place during the pandemic, the event will be more extensive that the previous one.
