New York-based Egyptian artist and photographer Youssef Nabil’s film is a poetic depiction of his fascination with belly dancers and his anxiety over the disappearance of this art form that is unique to the Middle East. This excerpt of a 12-minute video installation is visually inspired by the 1950s—the golden age of Egyptian cinema—and touches upon the artist’s fraught relationship with his home country, both elements that inform a large aspect of his practice.

I Saved My Belly Dancer is premiering in the Middle East at The Third Line's new space at Alserkal Avenue on 3 February, 2016.