City chooses first artist-in-residence

Congratulations to Rehab El Sadek, the painter, photographer, printmaker and installation artist chosen by the city’s Cultural Arts Division as its first-ever artist-in-residence. The program, part of the Office of Innovation’s Idea Accelerator Initiative, is aimed at using artists to help solve problems and engage the community in creative ways from inside the city itself. In this case, El Sadek will be embedded in the Watershed Protection Department, where she hopes to create artwork that will “engage the public around concepts of nature” and raise awareness about water conservation. The Austin-based El Sadek has worked in Africa, Pakistan and Dallas, and has had exhibitions in Amsterdam, London and Cairo galleries, to name a few.