Born in Fayoum, Egypt, Talaat holds a B.A. in Art Education from Helwan University (2001), a Diploma in Criticism from the High Institute of Art Criticism (2004) and an M.A. from the Faculty of Art Education (2004).
Talaat is a member of the Fine Artists Association and the Association of Writers and Artists (Cairo Atelier). He founded Misr Art Gallery, was a programmer for the General Administration of Arts Centers of the Sector of Fine Arts (Egyptian Ministry of Culture) and is the former director of the Palace of Fine Arts (Ministry of Culture).
Talaat has participated in numerous solo shows in Egypt and internationally. He has led workshops, curated symposiums, organized local and international exhibitions and been granted many merit certificates and honors. His art can be found in
private and state collections in Egypt and abroad.
Mohamed's statement on his Donkey sculpture for the CARAVAN project:
Conversion to theocracy
Self-proclaimed guardians gave themselves divine mandates to control nations.
These guardians seized authority outrageously and defiantly.
Demonstrating absolutely outrageous ideology, they stereotyped the shape, and manipulated the mind. They also outrageously claim the best understanding of the past, the present and the future. Self-proclaimed guardians are claiming that religion is the best mechanism for causing global changes.
Religious bigotry and chauvinism are the products of power struggles by selfish clergymen. Motivated by their self-interest, they ride religion to achieve political goals. As a result, religion is fragmented to several sects, faiths and parties. A major threat looms nearby when a war erupts between religious parties with everyone of these adversaries claiming selfishly it is given the divine mandate to steer the people's destiny in the present life and in the afterlife. Self-proclaimed guardians condemn others for being renegades or converts, who should change their minds to avoid a fierce war. The guardians would also arrest the alleged renegades, forcing them to come to terms with the preposterous truth.
The self-proclaimed guardians are no more than propagandists. They treacherously compromise human relationships and values; they would not hesitate to commit gruesome crimes in the name of God to overpower their opponents. In addition to the Taliban in Afghanistan and Al-Qaeda, many Islamist movements in Arab, Muslim and Western countries have distorted the image of Islam badly. After the US invasion, the Arab country of Iraq has become the tragic example of compromising religion to have a role in the political game.
