Through a mix of media ranging from drawing to sculpture, film, performance, and storytelling, Wael Shawky reinterprets cultural, religious, and artistic aspects of Middle Eastern history. For the Pavilion, he has conceived a filmed version of a musical work directed, choreographed, and composed by himself, dealing with the nationalist revolution of the Orābī against imperial influence (1879-1882). 1882 marked the year when the rebellion was suppressed by the British, who subsequently occupied Egypt until 1956. Among the most acquainted artists of his generation, Shawky is also presenting a solo exhibition, I Am Hymns of The New Temples, at Palazzo Grimani.