Graffiti: Walls of the People
(Photo: Alia Haju)The Arab uprisings saw an explosion in one of the most ancient and purest forms of human expression and communication: graffiti. Anonymous heroes across the Arab world took to the streets and compensated for all their pent up anger by scribbling, scratching, painting and spraying it all over the walls. Their vision for not just the future, but more importantly the present, was now out there for all to see.
Graffiti had been around well before the revolts erupted in 2011, something I was fully aware of. But the turn to Graffiti as a powerful weapon of ordinary people and the way it came to dominate public space in the Arab world was partly linked to forms of oppression and resistance that unfolded during the uprisings themselves.
This was clear to me in the case of Egypt. The day that Mubarak decided to shut off the Internet and mobile phone connection (January 28) was the day I knew that the Bouazizi domino effect was going to surpass our expectations in the Arab world and that a new type of confrontation was taking place.
Without traditional and advanced communication tools to organize demonstrations and facilitate interaction amongst activists, ordinary Egyptians were compelled to take their rage to the street.
However technologically advanced these tools were, they could not substitute what social upheavals throughout history always required: unmediated personal risk and sacrifice and the actual reclamation of physical space.
Thus came the graffiti explosion. The language of this explosion may not be identical in figurative representation or aesthetic appeal, but it is as significant and symbolic of a new-shared power of this medium to disrupt passivity and play a pioneering role in the urban unification of the cities it transformed, and the narration of a newfound political project that began in the Tunisian town of Sidi Bouzid and took on the Arab world and beyond.
Walls of the Arab Uprising
Walls of Bahrain
Anti-regime protests started in the tiny Gulf monarchy on February 14, setting up a permanent sit-in in Lulu (Pearl) roundabout in the capital Manama. Gulf-shield troops from neighboring GCC countries helped Bahraini forces quell the uprising, but protests persisted in different parts of Bahrain. The monument at Lulu roundabout, which became a symbol of the rebellion, was torn down by the Bahraini government on March 18.
A Bahraini protester carries a flag with the image of Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Mohammad, who is revered by Muslims in general, especially Shia Muslims. The wall reads "Down with Hamad". A slogan only used after the attack on the Pearl roundabout. King Hamad has been ruling Bahrain since the death of his father in 1999. (Photo: AFP)
Different graffiti depicting the significant role of Bahraini women in the 'Feb 14' uprising. (Photo: Rebelliouswalls.com)
The Pearl monument is painted onto a Bahraini flag under the title "We'll be back" and "We will break the shackles." (Photo: Rebelliouswalls.com)
"We will keep marking the walls, until we free our brothers." (Photo: Rebelliouswalls.com)
Anti-Bassiouni commission graffiti in Bahrain. The Bassiouni commission was established by King Hamad to investigate incidents the occurred during the uprising. (Photo: Rebelliouswalls.com)
An expression of solidarity with Bahrain and Yemen. (Photo: Rebelliouswalls.com)
"You won't break us, O executioner." (Photo: Rebelliouswalls.com)
(Left) A portrait of Ali Abdulemam, A Bahraini blogger who was sentenced in absentia to 15 years in jail. He's currently in hiding. (Photo: Rana Jarbou) (Right) "We will return" under a stencil of the Pearl monument. (Photo: Rebelliouswalls.com)
An anti-goverment protester sprays graffiti that reads ''We are people who wont bow down but only to our Creator'' in a village of Bosaiba, Budaiya west of Manama. (Photo: REUTERS - Hamad I Mohammed)Walls of Egypt
Hosni Mubarak of Egypt ceded power to a Military junta on 11 February 2011 after 18 days of non stop protests all over Egypt. Protests resumed against the military after incidents came to light of transgressions committed by the military against protesters.
A man walks by a wall that reads: "No to Military trials against civilians". (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
An Egyptian woman walks past graffiti reading "Revolution" outside the American University, off Tahrir Square in Cairo on December 21, 2011. Egyptians trickled into polling stations in the run-off of a staggered election marred by clashes between protesters and security forces that have left 14 people dead in five days. (Photo: AFP - Filippo Monteforte)
"Egypt is for all of us" - celebrating the diversity of Egyptians who took to the streets sharing the same demands for freedom. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
"We shall continue" signed by April 6 Youth, a group of activists named after the date of a workers strike in the spring of 2008. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
"Peaceful" in reference to the protest movement. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
"We're all Mina Daniel". Daniel was shot dead during a protest on October 9 at Maspero, home of Egyptian state television. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
"Do Not Reconcile" Revolutionary icons (martyrs & detainees) ranging from activists to ordinary citizens idolized on a wall. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
"You will not kill our revolution" by street artist Hosni. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
Work by Ganzeer showing a juxtaposition of military and ordinary citizens (1 of 2). (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
Work by Ganzeer showing a juxtaposition of military and ordinary citizens (2 of 2). (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
Day of Rage Martyrs: Mustafa Sawi and Ahmad Bassiouni. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
Freedom to Alaa Abdelfattah. Alaa, a blogger and activist, was detained for 56 days after being accused of instigating violence against the military in the Maspero incidents on October 9. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
Caricatures by Hosni depicting police and military brutality against citizens. LEFT: "Gas, pellets, and also bullets... Oh Thank you lord". RIGHT: "Army and Police are one hand" playing on the Tahrir chant: Army and people are one hand. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
Juxtaposition of Mubarak and Khaled Said. Khaled Said was tortured and killed by Egyptian security forces well before the Jan 25 revolution. (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
Walls of Libya
The Gaddafi regime lost control in much of the country as people rose against the 34 year reign of Africa's "King of kings." Gaddafi forces maintained a strong presence in the capital Tripoli and the west of the the country setting up a standoff between two armed camps. NATO intervention on behalf of the National Transitional Council helped it consolidate its control over Libya culminating with the killing of Muammar Gaddafi on October 20.
Gaddafi carries his "Jamahiriya" and leaves as the independence flag of Libya waves. The official name for Libya under Gaddafi was the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. (Photo: AFP - Jospeh Eid)
"Go Away" in green, the color that was most prominent in Gaddafi's Libya. (Photo: Ali Garboussi)
"The Tyrant has fallen" outside a coppersmith's shop. (Photo: Nadine Bekdache)
"The February 17 Revolution." (Photo: Nadine Bekdache)
"Toz", an Arabic slur, written on a tipped over statue depicting Gaddafi's The Green Book. The book was required reading for all Libyans. (Photo: Rima Marrouch)
Gaddafi's caricature image made of his likeness a common sighting on Libyan walls. (Photos: Reuters - Finbarr O'Reilly, Rima Marrouch)
Walls of Syria
People rose. The regime cracked down violently. Beyond that, it is hard to get a clear picture out of Syria. Instead, pieces of a very complex puzzle trickle out of Syria and beyond as the uprising is into its tenth month. Daraa, Hama, Homs, and Idlib would be the corner pieces of this puzzle, that is if it had borders.
"Will not study and will not teach, until the fall of the president" on a black board at a school. (Photo: Anonymous)
"Will not study and will not teach, until the fall of the president" in red, "Will not" and "fall" highlighted in grey. (Photo: Anonymous)
LEFT: Gaddafi is gone, Bashar your turn will come" (Photo: Nadine Bekdache). RIGHT: "Homs: Mother of Heroes" stencil in Beirut (Photo: Rana Jarbou)
"Syria is free" on a Beirut wall. (Photo: Rana Jarbou)
A wall shows Anti-Assad slogans while other writings are painted over. (Photo: Anonymous)
Walls of Tunisia
The story is well known by now. A street merchant from a remote town set himself on fire and the rest is history. Tunisia's transition into democracy is seemingly complete. An elected parliament is writing a constitution which Tunisians hope would live up to their aspirations and remain true to their sacrifices.
To the right of a "Freedom" mural, a Ben Ali quote from his last speech to the people as president where he said "I understood you" is topped with "Yes you did". (Photo: Ali Garboussi)
Women pose in front of calligraphy of a famous poetry verse by iconic Tunisian poet Aboul Kasem al-Chabbi. (Photo: Ali Garboussi)
(Photo: Ali Garboussi)
A mural of a protester throwing back a tear gas canister. Over 200 protesters were killed in confrontations with Ben Ali's security forces. (Photo: Ali Garboussi)
"If people ever wanted life..." is the first line in a famous poem which became the anthem of the Tunisian revolution. (Photo: Ali Garboussi)
A street vendor stands in front of a wall that reads "Freedom is a daily practice." (Photo: Jenny Gustaffson)
Murals around Tunis by Zoo Project, a Paris-based graffiti artist. (Photos: Jenny Gustaffson)
Murals around Tunis by Zoo Project, a Paris-based graffiti artist. (Photos: Jenny Gustaffson)
Murals around Tunis by Zoo Project, a Paris-based graffiti artist. (Photos: Jenny Gustaffson)
(Left) "To Create is to Resist", (Right) "I can't dream with my grandfather". (Graffiti by Ahl al-Kahf)
(Graffiti by Ahl al-Kahf)
"How limitless is the revolution, how narrow the road, how vast the idea, and how minute the state." (Graffiti by Ahl al-Kahf)
Walls of Yemen
Despite being one of the early movements,Yemen's uprising against the rule of Ali Abdullah Saleh's rule was always overshadowed by developments in other countries. A standoff similar to Libya's started developing in the south of the Arabian peninsula, but unlike in Libya NATO stayed out of this one. Foreign intervention in Yemen was on the diplomatic side where an agreement was sponsored by the GCC for Saleh to hand over power.
A Yemeni man writes in Arabic: "The people will not stay silent", on the facade of a bullet-riddled building in Harf Sufian region in Yemen's Amran province, 70 kms north of Sanaa. (Photo: AFP)
A man sleeps in front a shuttered store with sprayed graffiti that reads, "leave." (Photo: AFP - Mohammed Huwais)
A young Yemeni anti-government protester shows her palms bearing the Arabic writing "leave you butcher", refering to President Ali Abdullah Saleh. (Photo: Ahmad Gharbali)
Yemeni anti-government protesters paint a wall with the slogan "People want to build a new Yemen" during a demonstration in Sanaa on August 12. (Photo: AFP - Gamal Noman)
