#ForeverisNow Edition II at the Pyramids of Giza presents: The Unfinished Obelisk ‘Camoulflage’ by Zeinab Alhashemi

‘Camoulflage’ is a portmanteau, a combination of camel and camouflage, inspired by the history and legacy of the camel in the region and the way the animals blend with the desert dunes. The installation strikes the audience as a desert scene from which an abstract camel silhouette emerges. Just as the animal’s natural colouring and form enable it to blend in with its surroundings, so too does the installation meld with its desert backdrop, almost mimicking ancient Egyptian artefacts. In this work, the camels have transformed into an obelisk, revisiting the story of the Unfinished Obelisk in Aswan. In Egyptian mythology, the obelisk symbolized the sun god Ra. The unfinished obelisk is the largest known ancient obelisk and is located in the northern region of the stone quarries of Aswan. The body of this obelisk is in shades of natural camel hair from different carefully selected camel breeds. Reinforced metal rotes, used in all modern construction, are used in mesh form in the obelisk, reflecting a scene we witness every day in our modern lives and cities, that of half-done buildings and skeletons of the future landscapes. Camoulflage 1.618 is part of the Camoulflage series and is named after the golden ratio, a special number approximately equal to 1.618 that appears many times in mathematics, geometry, art, architecture and especially in nature. The Great Pyramid of Giza reveals that the positions and relative sizes of the pyramids may be based on the golden ratio. Evidence of the golden ratio in the Great Pyramid has been a complex mystery, hence the sculpture title ‘Camoulflage 1.618’.