Artist paints mural that covers 50 buildings in Cairo's 'Garbage City'

Artist eL Seed has completed a massive mural in Cairo that covers 50 buildings with the hopes of changing perceptions of the people who live there.

I wanted to bring beauty to a dirty and poor area, but when I got there I noticed those people were not dirty and not poor- eL Seed, artist

"You see a piece of the artwork on the [individual] buildings, but when you stand on a mountain, you see this huge circle made of calligraphy" eL Seed tells As It Happens host Carol Off. "It says, 'Anyone who wants to see the sunlight clearly, needs to wipe his eyes.'"

The area of Cairo where the mural is located is called Manshiyat Naser, loosely translated as "Garbage City." The population is 90 per cent Coptic Christian. Nicknamed zabbaleen or "garbage people," they have served as the city's unofficial trash collectors for decades. The only compensations they receive is from the recycled garbage they collect.

"I wanted to bring beauty to a dirty and poor area, but when I got there I noticed those people were not dirty and not poor as we imagine and not living in the garbage. They live from the garbage, which is totally different," says eL Seed.

People in the neighbourhood support themselves by collecting trash. They recycle up to 80 per cent of the waste they collect — an impressive accomplishment considering Western countries recycle about 25 per cent of waste.

eL Seed thought he would have to go door-to-door to convince each building owner to sign off on the project, but he found out he only needed the permission of one person, the Rev. Samaan Ibrahim, a local priest and a community leader.

"For me it was a community project. Even the people that were not painting, they were welcoming us," says eL Seed. "It was the most welcoming place I've ever been."

eL Seed hopes his art will bring attention to the area's residents and change their reputation.

"The goal of the project is you should switch the way you look at people and wipe out all the wrong ideas you have on a community based on the wrong perception."