Cairo is Egypt's cultural capital, as the majority of art galleries, headquarters of media outlets and other cultural establishments are located in the metropolis. Frustrated with the lack of opportunities for artists in other cities around the country, Alexandria-based artist Maha Mohamed and her colleagues launched the #Art_Has_No_Place campaign in July 2017.

Mohamed, 22, told Al-Monitor that the campaign is starting to show solid progress, with cultural events organized in various cities and hundreds of artists joining in. The initiative aims to promote the work of artists from all over Egypt, most of whom are musicians, actors, singers, painters and photographers.

"#Art_Has_No_Place mainly aims to shed light on the monopoly of Cairo in cultural affairs. I have wanted to join the field of TV advertisements and cinema, but I couldn't because I live in Alexandria. I found that other artists around me face the same problem, so I decided to launch a platform where the public can see the art of people outside the capital,” Mohamed said.

The initiative started with Mohamed and her colleagues posting their art on social media with the hashtag #Art_Has_No_Place, in an attempt to encourage other artists from all over the country to do the same.