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Collage of five diverse artworks from the Hammer Museum Collections side by side. From left to right: 1) Contemporary painting of two embracing figures with surreal elements. 2) Post-impressionist style painting of trees with vibrant blues and greens. 3) Black and white illustration of a face with intricate patterns. 4) Japanese woodblock print style image of a figure in a checkered robe. 5) Photograph of a couple dancing, the woman in a black dress and the man in white

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Digital Archive Take It or Leave It: Institution, Image, Ideology
Art Judith Barry, . . . Cairo stories
. . . Cairo stories, by Judith Barry, 2010–11

Judith Barry, Artist
. . . Cairo stories , 2010–11

Medium
Single-channel video on plasma screen with Cibachrome photograph, color, sound
Dimensions
24:00 min. Plasma screen: 40 x 25 in. (101.6 x 63.5 cm); photograph: 40 x 25 in. (101.6 x 63.5 cm) (framed)
Credit Line
Courtesy of the artist; Rosamund Felsen Gallery, Los Angeles; and Galerie Karin Sachs, Munich. Installation view at the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles; photography by Brian Forrest

Part of an ongoing series titled Not Reconciled, . . . Cairo stories examines how individuals are formed in relation to, and in reaction to, the politics of a nation-state and the structures of the cities they inhabit. Actors recite narratives written by Barry that are based on hundreds of hours of interviews she did with Cairene women about their relationship to the city. Several women discuss the increasing demands to dress with the utmost modesty, and Barry has left everything below the shoulders unrepresented. Their stories underscore the women's various negotiations with the systems, values, and pressures of the evolving urban landscape.