Sameh Al Tawil's portfolio includes several video and performance art projects from 2005-2011 that explore themes of cultural identity, virtual and real spaces, and political issues in Egypt. His works such as "STOP" and "Mind Squeeze" use live video and music to break down barriers between virtual and real worlds. Other projects like "Tawla" and "Radio" document everyday social and political discussions in Egypt through video installations. Al Tawil's photography also captures landscapes, portraits, and scenes from the Egyptian revolution.

1. Sameh Al Tawil
P o r t f o l i o
J a n u a r y 2 0 1 2

2. STOP
Life-Video/Audio performance
Exhibited in Cairo Performance festival 2011
STOP live-performance is dedicated to the dissolution of barriers
between virtual and real space.Deals with the question of appropriate
instruments to cross the borders between the real and virtual
worlds.In this performance artist looks for solutions in available
strategies of content and technology, and for new instruments, which
have yet to be developed.Opening both worlds for each other equals
the creation of an imaginary space, which is made available for
staging. Stop Performance concentrates on the perception of viewers,
recipients and dancer of and within this imaginary space. The “stage in
one’s head” as an imagination area.The theme of this project has been
in existence at my mind since the Egyptian revolution days 01/2011.
The common feature of these project and some of my recent projects
is the concern to develop and continue the possibilities of expanding
exhibition space.
V/A Manipulation by Sameh Al Tawil | Performer: Kamal Rabea 2011
Click here to Watch the Video

3. STOP
Life-Video/Audio performance
Exhibited in Cairo Performance
festival 2011
Click here to Watch the Video

4. MIND SQUEEZE
Life-Video performance
Exhibited in my Youtube channel 2010
Mind-squeeze: Video and performance 2010
In this project I was trying to perform a real-time physical
mind-squeeze
Mind-squeeze is an expression used when someone is
trying to come-up with a big original idea or a creative
solution for a big problem.
I suffer most of the time thinking about several things
starting with an advertising idea ending to myself, my
society and the whole world!
in this video i was trying to use my body movement and
real time music as well to increase my thinking
performance and to show a physical translation of the
thinking procedure real-time in front of a webcam.

5. BRAINSTORM
Musical performance 2010
Brainstorm: Performance 2010
In this project I was trying to squeeze my brain more
and more real-time in order to get more than a visual
ideas or phrases, I used my body-language and my
music knowledge as well to express my feelings about
many things in a powerful way...
Technically, I’ve programed a simple Audio program
with Max MSP language translates my body’s positions
into music, so i can Visualize & audiolize my ideas at
the same time. I’ve performed many different
brainstorming sessions with different topics, one time i
was analyzing my history and trying to make
connections between different stations in my life trip.
Soft&hardware:
- Max Msp 5
- Wii remote
- FM8 music
-Osculator 1.10

6. BRAINSTORMING
Musical performance 2010,Exhibition in Karmat ebn hany Hall, Cairo, Egypt
Brainstorming is a name for a time or a meeting
where/when people set together and squeeze their
minds to come up with new idea or solve a problem
in a creative way
My brainstorm performance was a chance for my to
confess, remember things and analyze certain points in
my life taking decisions and find solutions in front of
myself and publics
Click here to Watch the Video

7. SOLO 1
Video&Performance 2005, Exhibited in the
Fine art academy in Munich, Germany
SOLO: Video and performance
in this project I was thinking about myself as an Arabic
guy in Germany! carrying all of my history and culture
over my head... the difference between the culture i am
coming from and the western Culture was like a
handcuffs on my hands ....
this performance and video was a decision to play piano
even with the handcuffs.... I decided to keep both
cultures and mix them inside me to come up with my
own world.
In this project i’ve improvised oriental music for piano
and played it myself real-time
Click here to Watch the Video

8. SOLO 2
Video&Performance 2005, Exhibited in the Click here to Watch the Video
Fine art academy in Munich, Germany
SOLO2: Video and performance
in this project I was thinking about myself as an Arabic
man in Germany! carrying all of my history and culture
over my head... the difference between the culture i am
coming from and the western Culture was like a
handcuffs on my hands ....
this performance and video was an oriental scream on
conga with the handcuffs....
In this project i’ve improvised oriental rhythm for conga
and played it myself real-time

9. MEETING
Interactive video-installation 2006
Meeting: Interactive video-installation
In this project I’ve Created a virtual meeting
between the publics and a video guy laying on a
hospital bed when people come near the bed the
virtual guy detect the visitors and start a talk about
many themes, about himself, difficulties, love, Click here to Watch the Video
Revolution, death, Etc… he sings sometimes,
screams, laugh.. and when people leave he stopped
talking.this project was an invitation to accept and
communicate with others even if they come from
another dimensions!
Url: Watch Video

10. MEETING
Interactive video-installation 2006
Exhibition in the Fine art academy in Click here to Watch the Video
Munich, Germany 01/2006

11. MEETING
Interactive video-installation 2006
Exhibition in the Goethe institute
Cairo, Egypt 10/2006

12. Exhibited 3/2005 in the U-ban gallery
Munich, Germany
VISITORS
Video 2005
Visitors: Video and performance
this video has been made in Saudi Arabia in the desert
I invited some of my Egyptian friends in Saudi to meet in
the desert and discuss our problems as foreigners
talk, fight, make fun, in front of a camera
after that i started to manipulate the video and
produced a video version of our meeting
the video visualize in an artistic way how they feel about
their life
Click here to Watch the Video

13. VISITORS
Video 2005
Click here to Watch the Video
Exhibition in the U-ban gallery Munich,
Germany 3/2005

14. NO WAY
Animation 2004
v
No Way: Animation
I‘ve started this animation as a sketch for my video
“Visitors” i was just exploring the human life -tempo
then i developed it to deliver a new idea about cultural
Revolution.
for me cultures are like tempo in music, we all have
different life-tempo according to our cultures
the word no way means no right direction or accurate
tempo for everyone... Revolution is a sudden sync to our
own tempo, we should deal with the cultural differences
and the smart one never forget his tempo and
understands and taste other tempos an well
Exhibited in the Fine art academy in Munich,
Germany 01/2004
Click here to Watch the Video

15. (26)
Video 2005
26: Video
It’s my 26th birthday
and i decided to create another video about myself
and my life-tempo
I got a motorcycle and captured a video with the
maximum speed i could reach
later i decided to make the video more blur and noisy
but still fast
this is my life at this time Speedy, shiny, noisy and
funny at the same time
Click here to Watch the Video

16. TANZ FÜHRER
Supper 8 video manipulation 2005
This project based on an old 8mm footage i found
accidentally, that has a documentary for Hitler in munich
the main idea was to puppet the strong Hitler and make
him dance.
I started to play with this footage physically by coloring
and scratching it then to play with the old 8mm
projector by speeding, inverting and slowing the film
by playing the video bake and force i got a basic dance
movement synchronized with the old projector noisy
sound.

17. TAWLA
Video - installation
Tawla: Video 2004
Exhibited is Goethe institute Hall, Cairo Egypt
It’s a Documentary video installation visualized a
dialogue between two Egyptians when they are playing
Backgammon on a cafe on the street in cairo.... the
dialogue summarized most of the life aspects in Egypt
and sometimes the background spontaneously complete
the dialogue.
Click here to Watch the Video

18. DOMINO
Video documentary 2005
Domino is a very public game in egypt that could
be found in almost all of the cafes, 4 people can play at
the same time for about 1 hour in order to finish one
round.... this video documents one round of a domino
game where you can see the players hands and hear
their voices talking about many things politics, religion,
Fun, Etc...
Click here to Watch the Video

19. DOMINO
Video 2005
Click here to Watch the Video

20. KOPF
Video installation 2004
Kopf: Real-time Video installation and performance
Exhibited in Goethe institute Hall, Cairo Egypt
I’ve created this project in Germany 2004 ,
in this project I ‘ve created a virtual cafe in the Click here to Watch the Video
exhibition hall in cairo and projected a real-time 5
video streams from Egypt and Germany for 5
different people (including myself) sitting on cafes in
Cairo and Munich
the virtual space shows the 5 people as if they are
sitting together, this video is a virtual try to Mix the
Egyptian German culture visually .

21. Kopf: Real-time Video installation and performance
Exhibited in Goethe institute Hall, Cairo Egypt 2004
Click here to Watch the Video

22. GRABMAL
Video installation 2004, Exhibition “Right on time”
Frankfurt Dom, Germany
Grabmal or Ma’am in arabic is a holy
grave for a holy person,s people visit the
grave to pray and wish things for themselves
and their relatives and friends, what
interests me that many people believes that
the dead guy still has the power and the
connection to god, and his grave is a
communication access point..... I decided to
imitate this symbol (grave) and already
builded a grave in the exhibition hall in
frankfort and projected a sufi dancers video
in the background walls
to put the viewers on the same situation
and see how it would affect people from
other culture

23. GRABMAL
Video installation 2004, Exhibition “Right on time”
Frankfurt Dom, Germany
Click here to hear the ambient

24. RADIO
Video 2001
Radio: Video documentary
A short video of an Egyptian friend ” Haney”
the video captures a 20 Min of his work-life
in the very old workshop owned by his father
a very unproductive process and an old radio
in the background commented in a very funny
and spontaneous way on the video.
Click here to watch the Video

25. Cupboard: Video documentary
Another short video of an Egyptian friend ” Alaa”
the video captures a 20 Min of his life in an old
storage.. and how he is dealing with the life limitations
the radio is playing again a big roll of enriching the
video in avery artistic way... but the cupboard played
the greater one!
Click here to Watch the Video
CUPBOARD
Video 2001

26. SLAVERY DOCUMENTS
Documentation 2005

27. SLAVERY DOCUMENTS
Documentation 2000
Slavery documents: Performance, photos, Mono-types, and
installation
this project is a very first try for me to evaluate myself and the
society surround me, I’ve created this art work during my work-
residence in Saudi Arabia1999-2000 ... Although, I needed this
job to get money for my study expenses in germany, but I was
very angry about the country and the inhumanity in it’s low, as a
foreigner employee i need to take a written permission from my
employer for any and everything! can’t travel, or even buy a car
without permission! it’s one year of slavery with documents
I’ve collected all the official permissions and some photos for me
wearing a saudi clothes and some photos for other slaves.
this folder is a documentations about my feelings in saudi at the Click here to Watch the Project
time 1999-2000

28. SLAVERY DOCUMENTS
Performance 2000
In this project I was trying to explain my feelings about
my life in Saudi 1999-2000
I felt myself as a slave in a package
I missed my human rights and freedom
In this performance i covered myself and some other
employees with plastic to communicate that we became
a blurry humans, and the plastic covered with stamps
and shipping structures as if we are cargos ready for
shipping
Click here to Watch the Project

29. SELECTION OF
MY PHOTOGRAPHY
since 2005
“PALACE” By Sameh Al Tawil 2011

30. “PALACE” By Sameh Al Tawil 2011

31. “PALACE” By Sameh Al Tawil 2011

32. REVOLUTION
Egypt is free session 2011

33. REVOLUTION
Egypt is free session 2011

34. TIME MAP
Portrait session 2010

35. TIME MAP
Portrait session 2010

36. FAYOUM
Landscape session 2010

37. FAYOUM
Landscape session 2010

38. FAYOUM
Landscape session 2010

39. STILL LIFE
Landscape session 2010

40. SEA
Landscape session 2010

41. CAIRO CITY
Landscape session 2010

42. MASSIVE
Urban session 2010

43. MASSIVE
Urban session 2010

44. Thank you
www.Samehaltawil.com