THE FEVER, 2014-Ongoing
Multimedia installation,polyester, fabric, glass, wax, and wood.
Dimensions variable
The work titled “The Fever” is a mixed media installation composed of pieces of pyrex glass sculptures in an imaginary hospital in need of renovation. A large table with a massive mattress is placed in front, and laying on top of it is a black polyester cat.
The project was initially conceived in 2012, when El Meleegy began researching the Abbasiya hospital in Cairo after contracting malaria. The project discusses the concept ofrepair and functionality of the human body in Abbasiya Hospital (Cairo, Egypt) and th ehistory of glass pharmaceutical objects.
In the project, El Meleegy looks at the functionality of hospitals in Cairo, and their role as spaces that are constantly renovated by the municipality while also serving to repair the human body. The hospital attempts to restore the individual’s body to an earlier, healthier form but does so only on the surface. Similarly, the hospital is renovated and made to look“progressive” and “modern” to attract investors, important clients, and leading experts in the medical field, while falling short of equipment and resources. In looking at the patterns of transformation in hospitals across Cairo, El Meleegy surfaces a constant attempt to renovate, return, repair, and preserve the urban landscape and the human body. As such, every restorative action - whether in healthcare or in infrastructural development - is a process of sculpting our imagined futures.
