Not on display

Sham El-Nessem (Spring)

Photograph
01/2011 (photographed)
Artist/Maker
Nermine Hammam (photographer)
Place of origin
Cairo (photographed)

Photograph depicting a group of Egyptian soldiers in a tank, dressed in camouflage clothing. In the background, the branches of a tree bear spring blossoms and the sky has a pink hue.

Object details

Categories
Photographs
Military
Object type
Photograph
Titles
  • Sham El-Nessem (Spring) (assigned by artist)
  • Upekkha (series title)
Materials and techniques
archival inkjet print
Photographic Paper
Archival Inkjet Printing
Photography
Brief description
Photograph, 'Sham El-Nessem (Spring)' from the series 'Upekkha', archival inkjet print, by Nermine Hammam, Egypt, 2011
Physical description
Photograph depicting a group of Egyptian soldiers in a tank, dressed in camouflage clothing. In the background, the branches of a tree bear spring blossoms and the sky has a pink hue.
Dimensions
  • Image height: 63cm
  • Image width: 85cm
  • Paper height: 75cm
  • Paper width: 96.5cm
  • Framed height: 875mm
  • Framed width: 1075mm
  • Framed depth: 40mm
Gallery label
(September 2012)
When the army was called in to respond to the protests in Cairo’s Tahrir Square in January 2011, Hammam was struck by the vulnerability of the soldiers. They seemed to want to be anywhere but there. In her photographs she transports these soldiers into vibrant fantasy settings. The images are reminiscent of postcards. They liken the events of Tahrir Square to a tourist attraction that drew the world’s attention, but was not fully understood.

(Marta Weiss)
Credit line
Art Fund Collection of Middle Eastern Photography at the V&A and the British Museum
Production
These photographs were made in response to the events of January 2011 which resulted in the removal of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak. Hammam's series entitled 'Upekkha' is based on portraits made in Tahrir Square, Cairo.
Associated objects
Bibliographic reference
Light from the Middle East: New Photography
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
E.1130-2012

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdOctober 16, 2012
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1256350/sham-el-nessem-spring-photograph-nermine-hammam/
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest