Body art as self sharing Nicole Roerick came all the way from America to present an interactive installation and performance entitled Blink at Darb 1718 on Saturday, followed by a Q&A session. Roerick relocated to Egypt from Brooklyn, NYC in July 2014. She has an MFA and a BFA in dance and has been performing for almost 10 years. Her work has dealt with feminism, body image, politics, societal norms, rape/violence, relationships, personalities and raw emotion. In addition to dance, she is a certified yoga instructor who believes in the power of movement and the extreme feats of the body. Blink works with the idea of personal identity in different contexts. As a white, blonde female with tattoos and short hair, Roerick is constantly being challenged and subjected to new experiences here in Egypt. In the process she is also challenging her own ideals and views, exploring the possibility of understanding other points of view while remaining true to herself. This piece is a way for Roerick to share part of herself by displaying herself in different ways, registering reactions from the audience and asking where those instincts come from. She also hopes to gain a sense of who the audience members are and find a way to relate to them on a personal level. Roerick formed her company, the Nicole Roerick Collective, in 2011. She has since presented works at the DUMBO Dance Festival (Brooklyn), WestFest Dance Festival (NYC), Dance Films Kino (Chicago), Big Range Austin Dance Festival (Austin) and Brazos Contemporary Dance Festival (TX). Indian Ambassador Navdeep Suri inaugurated the India Pavilion at the 46th Cairo International Book Fair on 29 January. India has brought to the fair a number of publishing companies in the fields of medicine, science, management, children's books and educational materials. At the event Suri mentioned that Indian textbooks have been traditionally popular in Egypt. The Indian pavilion, he said, is expected to create a platform for bringing Indian publishers and distributors together with their Egyptian counterparts. The Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture (MACIC) will be holding India Days at Al-Shams Club, Heliopolis on 5 and 6 February (see Listings P.22). As part of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale), the first Arab Cinema Centre (ACC) will be held within the European Film Market (EFM) programme (5-15 February). Organised by MAD Solutions as part of its long-term strategy to promote Arab cinema, the event brings together 11 Arab film organisations: Film Clinic, Middle West Films, X-Rated, Crystal Dog and The Producers from Egypt, The Imaginarium Film from Jordan, Screen Institute Beirut from Lebanon, Emirati Cinema Campaign, Malmo Arab Film Festival from Sweden and Arab Cinema in Sweden as well as MAD Solutions from Egypt and the UAE. CEO and co-founder of MAD Solutions Alaa Karkouti said, “The Arab Cinema Centre at the Berlinale this year is a major step that's been taken without relying on any type of external support. Hence, the centre is supported only by the companies and organisations taking part in this event.” ACC activities include film screenings, networking sessions, meetings with international film companies and organisations and publishing-distributing the Arab Cinema Guide. The Faculty of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, in association with Fraunhofer Institutes, Germany and partners from Egyptian and German companies gave a symposium entitled “Synergistic and Personal Medicine” at the German University in Cairo (GUC). They discussed integrating traditional herbal treatments from Egypt into modern medical practices, particularly for diseases not yet effectively cured. Another topic was personalised medicine, which leads to a better understanding of diseases and their treatment on a person-by-person basis. Dean of the GUC faculty Ashraf Abadi read a speech by Prime Founder and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of GUC Ashraf Mansour. Papers were presented by eminent scientists including among others Mahmoud Hashem, Wolf-Georg Forssmann, Meselhi Ragab and Horst Klinkmann. Professors Clasu Kroggel and Abadi provided an overview of life sciences at the Fraunhofer Institutes and the Faculty of Pharmacy and Biotechnology. The General Organisation of Cultural Palaces (GOCP), headed by Sayed Khattab, is participating in the 46th Cairo International Book Fair (28 January-12 February) with a series of activities at the Creativity Camp, including a seminar on the book Black Lace by Horriya Suleiman. The GOCP's Bus of Beautiful Art featured face painting and a concert by the Port Said folk dance troupe for children. Among the major figures attending the event are the Syrian poet Adonis, the Egyptian philosopher Hassan Hanafi and the French journalist Alain Gresh. The fair also features a children's camp featuring a painting competition and clay animation workshops conducted by Ismail Al-Nazer. Another programme honoured the name of the late actress Faten Hamama, screening a documentary on her oeuvre and holding an exhibition of film posters and stills featuring her.
