This conversation formed part of a two-part series, Our Notion of Present is Subjective, in which artists usually separated by place considered the impact of intense immersion in shared time/space on their relationships, connections, perspectives and practice.
Talking place on 13 April 2011, for this talk Khaled Hafez travelled from Cairo to meet Onya McCausland at Delfina Foundation in London. They worked on a joint project, stemming from their initial encounter 16 years ago when they met in the Siwa Oasis in the Egyptian desert, only to lose contact. The project explored the shifting identity of the self and its belonging; they explored the virtual universe of the Internet, capable of reconnecting the authors of the project while instigating a revolution in Egypt.
This series was a collaboration with Visiting Arts as part of Artist to Artist International 2011. Artist to Artist provides the opportunity to bring together pairs of artists to initiate inter cultural dialogue across international borders. The structure of the programme is tailored by the artists themselves and puts the emphasis firmly on research and the exchange of ideas rather than production.
Artist to Artist is supported by Arts Council England and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and is co-hosted by The Delfina Foundation, London and Visiting Arts.