I’m a documentary photographer, visual storyteller and educator based in Egypt. My work focuses on the broad theme of identity explored through participatory creative practices. I work on personal stories and with NGOs and publications documenting human interest stories in North Africa and Middle East regions. In 2013, I began my research on collaborative lens based approaches and representation in visual storytelling. In my practice, I explore challenging traditional documentary frameworks by involving subjects to become participants in the creative process. I experiment with other mediums against the limitations of photography in developing layered and comprehensive visual narratives that challenge the exoticism of communities, including my own as an African and Arabic woman.
My long-term project The Longing Of The Stranger Whose Path Has Been Broken was awarded AFAC & Magnum Foundation’s Arab Documentary Photography Program grant 2020, National Geographic Society’s Emergency grant for Journalists 2020 and Creative Activism award 2021. I was also awarded the Foto Evidence W Award 2022 to publish my project in a book form, the World Press Photo Regional Award 2022, the Premi Mediterrani Albert Camus award 2022 and Photo Frome Photobook Award 2023. My work has been exhibited worldwide including in Egypt, USA, UK, Germany, Brazil, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Greece. My book of the same title was launched in early 2023, available for sale worldwide.
