Hamdy Reda is a visual artist and curator. He is the founding-director of Artellewa, an arts space in Ard El Lewa, a densely populated poor district of Cairo. Reda established Artellewa in 2007 to create a free space to support emerging artists and local community members. Artellewa aims to be an inclusive space for the development of visual arts, and mainly to offer and facilitate artistic projects, workshops, as well as art exhibitions. This creates a unique opportunity for Egyptian and foreign artists to interact with the local community and environment, notably with children and youth to discover and enhance their musical and artistic skills and talents. That way, Artellewa is a “creative space”? that bridges the gap between artists and society in an inclusive area.
Artellewa uses art to enrich the civic and cultural life in Ard El Lewa through different activities; including concerts, exhibitions, theatre performances, workshops and trainings regarding performing arts, photography, visual arts, and education. It aims to revolutionize the artistic and cultural environment as well as allow for easy and diverse access to its resources.
Artellewa’s space gives people a safe zone where they can freely express their own opinions, socialize, and discuss different social issues as part of artistic and engaging activities. Reda dreams to see Artellewa replicated by other artists all over Egypt to support cultural and artistic development in slums and other disadvantaged areas.