visit to Amekhlij

exchange
2017

During my studies, I joined a research trip to Amekhlij, a small Berber village of about 200 people, located 35 kilometers south of Marrakech. The goal of our visit was to establish an exchange with the local weaving community. In the first days of our visit, the weavers shared their unique working methods with us. We learned that they weave from memory, using motifs passed down through generations—often without knowing their original meanings.

In the following days, we invited the women weavers to draw scenes from their everyday lives and things they love. We compiled their drawings into a single design, which was then woven by Rachida, the village’s principal weaver. The finished carpet, created as our commission, was presented as a gift to Hamid, upon whose invitation we had travelled to Amekhlij.

Photos of the research process. Traditional carpet weaving (top left), drawings by the local weavers (top right, middle, bottom left), and the finalized carpet for Hamid (right bottom).

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Textile artist, researcher, and writer based in Amsterdam. I work with textiles and other material forms as a way of thinking and researching. I thereby treat these materials as tools to expose and unsettle taken-for-granted views and naturalized routines of daily life.

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