THE VIEW FROM FEZ: Women's Mirror II Opens in Fez

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Women's Mirror II Opens in Fez

Yesterday more than 150 people attended the Women's Mirror II conference, exhibition opening and concert

Participants, ALC students and members of the public at the opening of Women's Mirror II

Women's Mirror II was organised by the ALC-ALIF Photography Club and sponsored by the American Language Center and Arabic Language Institute of Fes. Following on from last year's exhibition Women's Mirror I, this year 20 local women turned their cameras on the men in their lives. The aim was to give them a means to express themselves through the universal medium of photography. The exhibition can be seen at ALIF Riad until April 13.

The Women's Mirror II Conference began at 2 PM, and panel members included Touria Najmi from Batha Women's Shelter; Hicham El Gharrab, a teacher at Bensouda High School who has a Masters in Gender Studies and artist Violeta Caldres.

Touria Najmi from Batha Women's Shelter and artist Violeta Caldres at the Conference

Touria said that women have long been restricted from being able to fully express themselves by their economic situations. Hicham said that the Islamic religion is not the problem in Moroccan society - it's the way it has been traditionally interpreted and used to suppress women. "The text has been misinterpreted," he said. All the panel members agreed that social media has given many women a voice that has previously been denied them. Translations were provided by American researcher Meri Miyoshi and journalism student Hanan Touzani.

Left to right: photographers Touria Najimi, Eloudie Dufour-Merle; Boushra Laktami; organiser Omar Chennafi; photographers Siham Baroudi; Inass El Arabi and Violetta Caldres

At 5 PM the Women's Mirror II exhibition opened, and the space buzzed as members of the public and the women photographers and their families looked eagerly at the results of their work, presented in groups in handsome black frames.

Fatema Zohra Hajji records the event

Awatif Maqboul, Darifa Khedaoui and participating photographer Khadija Maqboul

University students Boushra Laktami and Othman Benhaddouch

Artist Violeta Caldres hennaed Arabic sayings on many hands

Participating photographer Siham Baroudi

At 6 PM more people poured in and the courtyard was packed as the Songs for Fes Concert began, fronted by oud player Leo Fabre-Cartier, accompanied by a classical guitarist and tabla player. Painter Abderrahim El Hassani did a visual interpretation to the Andalusian-style music in the form of a speedily executed abstract painting.