Ismailia Real Estate Investment Hosts Cairo Photo Week in Its Fourth Edition Across 14 Locations

Downtown Cairo is preparing to host the fourth Cairo Photo Week, organised by Photopia, under the slogan “Scene Detection”, between 8-18 May. The upcoming edition is to be held under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and Tourism Promotion Authority, EgyptAir as official carrier, and in partnership with Ismailia Real Estate Investment and the gold sponsor Cairo Design District (CDD).

Cairo Photo Week includes over 20 individual and collective exhibitions for professional local and international photographers, producers of audio-visual works, photographers, and film producers. They also include leading international photography institutions, such as World Press Photo, Vogue, National Geographic, and Getty Images, in 14 locations in Downtown.

Furthermore, Cairo Photo Week will host over 100 talks, workshops, and live demos, with the participation of experts and artists from Egypt, Dutch, Denmark, France, Spain, Italy, United Kingdom, Norway, Swiss, Tunisia, Lebanon, Morocco, Algeria, and Palestine, and in collaboration with a number of embassies, including the Dutch, Italian, Spanish, French, Swiss, Danish, the British Council, and the European Union of Institutes
Photopia’s founder and executive director, Marwa Abu Leila, stated, “Cairo Photo Week celebrates artists who are capable of capturing ideas and touching moments through their lenses. We have selected this year’s theme: “Finding the View”. Through works and discussion sessions with experts and specialists, we focus on highlighting near-term prospects for photography professions which are based on the thoughts and visions of innovators in the age of AI and its challenges, including decreased demand for photographers’ works and local and international economic slowdown.

Abu Leila added, “What distinguishes Cairo Photo Week is that it targets general audiences and grants them opportunities to meet Egyptian, African, Middle Eastern, and international photographers. It also creates a state of cultural interaction which is reflected in artistic production of professionals and emerging image makers”. Moreover, she said that the fourth edition program is to cover a wide range of photography genres, including: documentaries, photojournalism, cinematography, and experimental practices in fashion, food, contemporary art, digital media, non-fungible tokens, and art direction. In addition to exhibitions, there will also be lectures, educational programs targeting experts and emerging artists, discussion sessions, photography tours, short film screenings, and still photo show
Over its past editions, Cairo Photo Week has succeeded in attracting vast audiences, especially with free entry to exhibitions and nominal fees for lectures and discussions. Last year, it hosted over 35 thousand visitors, as well as 4500 educational participants.

The participants of Cairo Photo Week include cinematographer Abd El-Salam Mousa, Ahmed Hayman, Ayman Abbas, Batoul Al-Dawy, Aisha Al-Shabrawy, Muhammad Bakr, Adel Mubarez, German Vincent Vande, Peter Menzel, late Armenian photographer Van Leo, Yasser Onwan -AKA the dinosaur-, Kariman Al-Haywan, and Nermine Hammam.

For the first time, Cairo Photo Week is to organise a specialised market for photography services, such as studio rentals, photo printing, camera and lens maintenance, as well as purchasing photography equipment and cameras through interest-free instalments by Value. The exhibitions and events of Cairo Photo Week are to take place in multiple locations in Downtown Cairo, including: Cinema Radio, Kodak Passageway, consulate building, Hangar, Garage, Factory, Mashrabia Gallery, El-Shorbagy Gallery, French Cultural Centre, Access Art Space, and the American University in Cairo. (For the first time, Cairo Photo Week heads to the Fifth Settlement in Cairo Design District (CDD) at One Ninety by LMD on Monday, May 5th 2025.