SAWP – Cultural Walks

BACKGROUND

Culture has the power to stimulate civilizational change. Arts and culture are recognized tools for community participation. Unfortunately, our country suffers from the lack of cultural and artistic spaces. Perhaps because traditional buildings such as, theatres, cinemas, etc. cost a lot to be built and equipped. The inability to find places to practice arts and culture affects our environment and ways of living. Thus, seeing aspects of chaos and notoriety quite a lot as a result in certain areas.

 

This affects the community in dealing with the people of these areas. Hence, it affects their economic and social life. Recent efforts by the State are evident in improving the status of low-income areas and villages. However, there is still a lack of culture and art in these areas. That’s why we introduced SAWP! Which is a space for growth and development that comes as a strategic solution to this problem.

What’s SAWP?

SAWP is a strategic concept initiated by ElMadina in 2013. It aims at supporting the economics of creative culture and raising citizens’ awareness on how to use local resources in order to improve the social image.

 

SAWP’s strategy re-explores new and natural areas to promote them as art and culture spaces. Natural places that have different roles within people’s lives such as, coffee shops, hair salons, grocery stores, etc. In order to support the creative economy of culture that can play an influential role in sustainable development and social change by changing citizens’ imagination towards how to use their resources to start social and cultural projects.

Here come the steps towards this strategy

  1. First Stage:
    It starts with redesigning a cultural map for a region and making a guide on it that includes famous stories, myths and historical heritage. In addition to the most prominent industries and traditional crafts in the neighborhood. Along with the most famous characters that grew up there and the neighborhood’s codes of behavior.

    This manual is made in collaboration with the neighborhood and with the participation of artists and architects of cultural planning, which eventually produces a map and cultural trajectories in these neighborhoods, which make the residents look forward to a bright future.

  2. Second Stage:
    Includes training the neighborhood’s residents. Particularly, women and youth, on artistic skills such as, storytelling, collage, social theatre and traditional crafts. In addition to training them on how to make the best out of their spaces, and to equip these spaces with the simplest stuff to become spaces for cultural practice.
  3. Third Stage:
    Includes introducing art products and events in the neighborhood that visitors can enjoy, and get the chance re-explore the neighborhood.

SAWP Culture Walks Crew

Ahmed Saleh

Mohab Saber

Farah Makki

Carla Felicetti

Nour Makki

Kamar Makki

Alexandro Zomas

Dahlia Galal

Mara Papavasiliou

Kirlos Yousif

Kholoud Essa

Shehab Ismail

Hend El Haririe

Jihad Abu Sief

Mohamad Al Kotob

Muhammed Abbas

Heba Elhanafy

Mohamed Gohary

Ahmed Hazem

SAWP – Karmus Culture Walks