http://www2.anba.com.br/noticia/21868834/arts/artist-carries-egyptian-museum-throughout-brazil/
Artist carries Egyptian museum throughout Brazil
Essam Elbattal moved from Cairo to Rio Grande do Sul state 15 years ago and sets up touring museums about Ancient Egypt in different cities of the country. Exhibits have sound and light presentations, besides an app.
Essam Elbattal: a mission of telling stories
São Paulo – The Egyptian visual artist Essam Elbattal has been living in Brazil for 15 years now with the mission to offer knowledge about the history of his country throughout the cities. A graduate major in Visual Arts at Cairo University and in Economy at Zakzek University, he has a studio in Porto Alegre, capital of Rio Grande do Sul state, and from there he sets up touring museums about Ancient Egypt throughout Brazil. Currently, there are three museums on display in shopping malls in Rio de Janeiro, Porto Alegre and Caruaru, Pernambuco state. On Tuesday (1st), another one will open in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul.
“I work with what pleases me. I live from my work, from culture”, he said in an interview to ANBA by phone. Elbattal came to Brazil for the first time in 1996, on a work trip to Rio Grande do Sul’s capital, and moved permanently to the country around four years later. “I noticed a lot of interest from the children, a lot of people wanting to know how this important part of our history happened. I show all that with the replicas that I make”, says the Egyptian. He says that selling culture in Brazil is hard, but celebrates the success of his work.
Entrance of the touring museum: a door to Egypt
At Elbattal’s studio in Porto Alegre the pieces used in the touring museums are manufactured, which are replicas of archeological pieces from Ancient Egypt, such as the Nefertiti bust, the mortuary mask and sarcophagus of Tutankhamunm, an statue of the goddess Bastet, represented by a cat, among others. The artist works with a team of approximately 45 people, responsible for both the material manufacturing and the management side of the business. Normally, the exhibitions are set up with 250 to 300 pieces, he says.
Despite portraying the ancient history, the work done by Elbattal is modern. He uses resins and fibers in the creation of the pieces, besides more traditional materials such as wood. The museums don’t just exhibit the sculptures. They are designed so the visitors feel like they’re entering Ancient Egypt. Besides the lectures, which are presented during the exhibitions, the museum has a sound and light show, in which each illuminated piece tells about the milestones in Egyptian history that the current civilization kept as its heritage.
Replicas are made by the Egyptian and his staff
In the museum set up at Bourbon Shopping mall, in Porto Alegre, visitors can download an app, the Tagpoint, with sound, visual and text information about the pieces displayed. “They will carry the museum with them”, says Elbattal. A visit to the place, according to the artist, can bring knowledge about the construction of the pyramids, the glass manufacturing of the ancient Egyptian civilization, among others. “It’s not by chance that Egypt marked our current culture”, he says.
Besides the shopping mall in Porto Alegre, currently there are museums that can be visited in Américas Shopping mall, in Rio de Janeiro, in Shopping Caruaru, in the city of same name in Pernambuco, and, starting Tuesday (1st) another one will be open in Shopping Norte Sul Plaza, in Campo Grande. According to information from the website of Touring Egyptian Museum, around 300 exhibitions in nearly 30 cities were already set up.
Essam Elbattal studies the history of Ancient Egypt since the 1980s and took various museology courses in Brazil. Born in the Egyptian province of Sharkia, he also keeps an studio in Cairo, in front of Tahrir square, and travels back to his country two to three times per year. In Brazil, he lives with his wife, from Argentina, and four children.
Contact:
Touring Egyptian Museum
Website: www.museuegipcio.com.br
Phone: +55 51 3013 1658
Email: contato@museuegipcio.com.br
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
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