'By returning to the local, Ronnie Close encourages us to see lived experience as a value for photography in Egypt. This shift situates decolonization as a way of seeing.' Farida Youssef , independent curator and critic 'In this engaging, accessible and important book, Ronnie Close uses rich examples from Egyptian cultural production to destabilize and radically expand established histories of photography.' Benedict Burbridge , University of Sussex 'Ronnie Close provides a compelling alternative reading of Egypt's visual heritage. This wide-ranging account demonstrates Dipesh Chakrabarty's claim that our historical differences actually make a difference.' Justin Carville , IADT Dún Laoghaire The 25 January Revolution in 2011 placed Egypt at the centre of discussions about the radical transformations taking place in global photographic cultures. Yet Egypt and photography share a longer history that is rarely included in Western accounts of the medium. Decolonizing images presents a new account of the rich visual cultures produced and exhibited in Egypt, focusing on the camera's ability to conceal as much as it reveals.

Moving from the initial encounters between local knowledge and Western-led modernity, the book explores how the image intersects with the politics of representation, censorship, activism and aesthetics. It overturns Eurocentric understandings of the photograph through a compelling reading of this indigenous visual culture, providing a complex vision of decolonial difference in contemporary Egypt. Ronnie Close is an Associate Professor at the American University in Cairo.