Cairo Collective Archives Everyday Design
The Archief-Cairo collective is gaining recognition for its work documenting everyday design in Egypt. The project archives visual culture found on the street, from hieroglyphic letterpresses to local signage. It serves as a source of design inspiration rooted in non-commercial, cultural contexts.
- The collective was founded in 2018 by Hana Neuman, Maram Al Refaei, Sherine Salla, and Ryan Vicente Lee Grees, who connected at the German University in Cairo where Grees was a lecturer. - A key project for the group involves reviving the world's only letterpress with hieroglyphics, which is housed in a small room built in 1907 at the French Institute of Oriental Archaeology (IFAO). - The collective's "Makhtout" initiative explores Arabic-Islamic manuscripts to inspire contemporary design, directly responding to the Eurocentric focus often found in Egyptian design education. - In November 2023, Archief-Cairo collaborated with the design publication *MacGuffin* on a workshop and magazine supplement called "Cairo Archives," which investigated the use of vernacular typography in the Middle East. - The group's process involves deep, sensory exploration of Cairo districts like Attaba and Downtown, where they collect and analyze everyday objects such as plastic bags, stickers, and product packaging for inspiration. - Their work is part of a larger "Made in Egypt" aesthetic movement, which sees a revitalized interest in local street culture, traditional crafts, and kitsch visuals as a source for contemporary design. - The act of archiving is framed as a form of resistance in a city where visual culture is constantly at risk of disappearing due to urban development and digital replacement of handmade signage. - In addition to their archival work, the studio takes on commercial projects, including creating the visual identity for the Hundred Best Arabic Posters Competition.
