The photographs of Armenian-Egyptian photographer (and 2000 Prince Claus Laureate) Van Leo (1921-2002) provide us with a unique insight into the cosmopolitan and vibrant society of Cairo in the second half of the 20th century. Among Van Leo's clients were theatre actors and cabaret dancers. Soldiers, strippers, journalists, intellectuals and movie stars followed. Among them were famed singers, such as Farid al-Atrash, film stars such as Omar Sharif and Rushdie Abaza, as well as iconic Egyptian writer Taha Hussein. Van Leo also took hundreds-if not close to one thousand-self-portraits, many of them previously not seen. He was surely one of the most original studio photographers of his time.

The exhibition "Becoming Van Leo: A Work in Progress" provides a view into the workings of a long-term project exploring representations of the late photographer. A selection of classic studio portraits, as well as self portraits is presented. In a further section, the exhibition presents a number of Van Leo's studio tools, family albums, books, and personal letters.

This exhibition is organized as a part of the International Art Programme in Amsterdam of the Prince Claus Fund and the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts and is curated by Negar Azimi and Karl Bassil, Arab Image Foundation.