From October 26-December 14, 2019 the Mathaf Farid Belkahia Museum will host the work of 14 Moroccan photographers as part of the Carte Blanche A Hassan Hajjaj exhibition. The group has been uniquely selected by Hassan Hajjaj, an artist, designer, and filmmaker whose work has earned him the title, “Morocco’s Andy Warhol.” The exhibition allows visitors to explore Hajjaj’s colorful world. Originally from Larache, a harbor town situated in Northern Morocco’s Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, Hassan lives between Morocco, New York, and Marrakech. The self taught artist’s portraits, installations, and furniture designs are inspired by a combination of London’s hip-hop and reggae scenes as well as his North African roots.
Among the 14 photographers invited to join Hajjaj is Meriem Yin. Her signature work is embroidery photography. She previously appeared in Hajjaj’s Mi Casa es Su Casa exhibit hosted in Marrakech’s Comptoir des Mines Galerie. The most memorable image was of her mother, who learned to read and write at the age of sixty. In Morocco, illiteracy rates still remain signficantly high.
Another artist who also appeared at the Mi Casa es Su Casa event is Nabil Nadifi. The French-Moroccan editorial photographer has been shooting films for over a decade. His work focuses on street photography and portraiture that tell stories.
The Mathaf Farid Belkahia Museum is located in the Marrakech Palmerarie. It is dedicated to Farid Belkahia, who served as the director of the radical art school École des Beaux-Arts, from 1962 to 1974.