ON COMPROMISE
The beauty of Moroccan handicraft lies within the act of compromising. The intricate and complex Islamic patterns hold their presence through a string of compromises between mathematical precision and the artisan’s freedom of choice.
Every cut, every stroke, and every touch of the artisan’s hand leaves a trace of the human on the design. And that physicality of the artisan’s touch detaches the work from achieving the absolute accuracy of highly elaborate and logical patterns. In my mind, however, those moments of inaccuracy, lead the design to attain its completeness.
My work is about these compromises. Through my art, I aim to show what lies beneath the surface of what appears to be purely mathematical pattern. My drawings follow the movements of the artisan’s hands and record every line and grid he made to understand how to create each pattern. The drawings allow the viewers to decipher the patterns that were later cut into each plaster sculpture and to understand the process of making each work. Through such a process, I hope my work shows the beauty of intangible human characteristics present in Moroccan handicraft practices.
* This project has been featured on: RISD Global Website
PROCESS. Ornament Analysis
selected pages from a travel sketchbook
FINAL WORKS FOR EXHIBITION. On Compromise
Installation in Ketamine Fondouk, Fez Morocco
2018
