Trivium Retreat Crafts Deeper Meaning

The Trivium Retreat, to be held from September 10 to 17, will explore the connections between craftsmanship and spiritual life

Hamza El Fasiki, founder of Craft Draft

The retreat will include workshops by craftsmen and artists, including copper etching, bookbinding, herbal medicine, calligraphy and photography.

As well as learning how to "make", there will be visits to sacred spaces in and around Fez such as Moulay Ya’qoub, the Qarwaeen and saintly shrines, which will provide space for contemplation.

One of the organisers, Miriam Hicklin, says, "We will also seek answers to some of the most pressing questions that we have today concerning our work and lifestyles. Why do we work? What work should we do? How does our work connect to the rest of our existence?"

Miriam Hicklin of Atlas Apothecary

The Trivium Retreat is the result of a collaboration between Miriam Hicklin, Hamza El Fasiki and Aiysha Amin.

"Hamza and I had throught for a long time that there was something more that could be added - to explore intersections between spirtiual and artistic life of Fez," says Miriam. "An artist friend and I in London, (Aiysha), were on a spirituality and nature retreat. She is involved in the traditional arts and loves Fez, so we thought about offering a workshop which was a combination of art, spirituality and nature."

Miriam Hicklin lives between London and Fez, where she is the founder of The Atlas Apothecary. At Atlas, she teaches what she has learnt from apprenticeships with herbalists and midwives, and instructs in herbal medicine making and holistic health. She will co-ordinate the retreat and teach herbal medicine.

Hamza El Fasiki lives in Fez and is the founder of Craft Draft. The son of a master craftsman, he came back to craftsmanship after training academically.

 Craft Draft is an art studio in the medina which teaches traditional crafts in short-medium term workshops. At the retreat, Hamza will lead the crafts workshops.

Aiysha Amin, artist and craftswoman

Aiysha Amin lives in London and is a practicing artist and craftswoman, trained at the Prince’s School of Traditional Arts. On the retreat she will lead the lecture curriculum and introduce participants to the principles of Islamic geometry.

"Craftsmanship has always been part of people's spiritual lives, and is integrated within Sufi traiqas (brotherhoods)," explains Miriam.  During the week, participants will also be able to visit local shrines for circles of Dhikr (Islamic Meditation).

Hamza will host participants at his studio in the Fez medina, where they will learn the principles of copper etching and bookbinding. Participants will have an opportunity to observe the work of craftsmen around the Medina, including a blacksmith, woodworker and tile-maker, as well as being taught calligraphy by a local master.

There will also be a trip to the saintly shrines of Moulay Ya’qoub and Lalla Shafia outside of Fez, where Miriam will hold a class on the principles of herbal medicine. She says the group will have a picnic and forage for herbs. "We will identify plants in the wild, and I will talk about how we use each of the herbs that we find, with a holistic approach. Artiemisa, lavender, hardy mediterranean herbs should still growing in September, and we will make infusions and perhaps lotions."

Towards the end of the week, photographer Omar Chennafi will host a masterclass on spiritual photography on the slopes of Mt Zalagh.

Accommodation will be at Dar Arsama in the Fez Medina, a beautifully decorated guest house run by artists Violeta Caldrés and her husband Adil Elfasi. Some of the workshops will be held there.

"We are arranging every day in a structured way," says Miriam. "The day will begin at the first call to prayer, when there will be time for prayer and meditation - silent time - followed by the workshops and lectures."

Miriam emphasises that the retreat is open to people from different spiritual practices and traditions. "We have no restrictions on who we take. We are open to having people who haven't done much art practice - for them to take the skills they learn over their week into their professions - and also to people who do practice art. These days, people have no time. There are very few who do their jobs in a mindful and purposeful way, and have an appreciation for making things. We want to offer people the opportunity to change their minds about what they want to do with their lives."

Group size is limited to 10 on the Trivium Retreat, and just a few places remain. The deadline for applications is June 10.

For further information, please see www.craftdraft.org/retreats

To complete an application form CLICK HERE. 

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What Now For the Artisans of Fez?

While master artisans in Fez are battling increased competition from imported goods, and the loss of the traditional apprenticeship system, they still create work of exquisite quality 

On Tuesday April 7, a group discussion was held in the Craft Draft studio at Khrachiyen fondouk at R'Cif, on Fez artisans and their past and future roles. Organised by Culture Vultures, and facilitated by social entrepreneur, musician, and budding copper-smith Hamza El Fasiki, the Artisan Forum was attended by three grand 'malams', or master-craftsmen in the field of copper etching. Also participating where several curious locals, two visiting artists, and a Canadian journalist.

The group who attended the Artisan Forum included master-craftsmen, locals and visitors

Master-craftsmen Mohamed Ben Jebara; Makhtar El Fasiki and Idriss Sakhi shared their perspectives of how they had begun training as children and how their vocation had changed over the decades.

Makhtar El Fasiki, the father of Hamza, said, "I was born in 1951, and started practising in 1959. In 1968, I became a master-craftsman, and in 1993, everybody voted for me to run the Guild."

"I used to only do the most difficult part of the work, and then pass it on to the artisan who worked with me, and then the apprentices," he said. "By this method, I could make five trays a day. Now, I can make only one tray, because I have to do everything myself."

L-R Mohamed Ben Jebara; Kahlil Lazar from Culture Vultures; Makhtar El Fasiki, Idriss Sakhi

In 1997, Morocco signed up to a UNICEF convention on the rights of the child. Overnight, young apprentices were removed from their places of work and sent to school. "We called what they were doing learning a trade: they called it child labour," said Mohamed Ben Jebara.

Now, young would-be-artisans attend a school for handicrafts that was set up by the Moroccan government. Hamza El Fasiki explains, "But the Copper-smiths Guild didn't join, because they didn't agree that it was a trade you could learn in two years, and then call yourself a copper-smith." So the number of new people taking up the trade is small.

Makhtar El Fasiki demonstrates his master-craftsman skills

The guild system, too, has changed considerably in the past few decades. Once all powerful, the guild controlled the quality of what was produced, resolved disputes between craftsmen, and checked for the presence of dangerous chemicals, such as lead. Now individuals set up their own businesses, without necessarily belonging to the guild, and there is less ability to control quality. Artisans may work from templates, rather than being able to draw their own designs using a compass. "You have someone who is known as a mul shekkara, one who owns the bag (of money), without knowing the trade," said Hamza. "Now they operate as businessmen, employing several copper-smiths and re-selling what they produce."

Rather than the old techniques being "frozen in time", the types of products have also had to change, to follow demand. "For example, the French introduced an oval tea-tray that became very popular," said Idriss Sakhi. "So we started to make them." He produced several examples of different kinds of tea trays to demonstrate the evolution of their design. "Every new design has a life of about 10 - 12 years, and then it dies," he said.

Facilitator of the Artisan Forum, Hamza El Fasiki

Hamza said that it was arguable as to whether the necessary adaptation was innovation, or invasion, particularly given the effect of colonialism. Another significant influence has been tourism, where small products are created, specifically so tourists can take them on planes.

"From the 1950s to the 1990s, we made only functional things that were used in houses. Now there are new types of businesses, such as wedding and party caterers, who have created more demand," said Idriss Sakhi.

A growing problem is the increase in plagiarism of original designs. "Every piece used to have the mark of the person who had made it. Nowadays, work is being churned out, which doesn't even have a mark, or they copy the mark from another artisan."

The master-craftsmen continue to produce their wonderful designs, which are much in demand, but they fear that there are few to follow in their footsteps. Makhtar El Fasiki is proud that his son Hamza has chosen to learn his craft, and that he is helping to spread the word about the importance of the artisans of Fez.

Hamza El Fasiki in his father's chair

Words and photos by Suzanna Clarke

To see more on Culture Vultures activities CLICK HERE

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Learn More About the Handicrafts of Fez

Fez is not only the spiritual heart of Morocco, it is also the artisanal heart.  While many of the arts and crafts produced in Fez can be purchased in other parts of the country, they are less expensive and more readily available in Fez

Visitors to Fez can best get an idea of the range and quality of products by visiting the Artisan Handicraft Centre. 

The centre is open most days and entry is free. You will find it on Avenue Hassan II.

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Exposé Artisanal - Linking Up With the Artisans of the Fez Medina

Exposé Artisanal is an exciting initiative that aims to create opportunities to meet and speak with artisans in the Fez Medina. Next Monday February 3 at 6 pm an event will be held at ALIF Riad to present the project

Too often visitors to the Medina only glimpse the artisans who create the arts and crafts for which Fez is justifiably famous. Too few have a chance to sit and exchange stories. Now that is about to change and a window will be opened onto the real personalities behind the beautiful objects they produce.

Exposé Artisanal intends to bring the artisans into direct contact with writers, researchers and journalists and to provide translators. For those involved there will be workshops on blogging and storytelling so that the most can be made of the material they gather. A pop-up museum, exhibition, and a book is planned.  A blog - Artisans of Morocco - is already up and running. Exposé Artisanal offers a unique opportunity to foster a new appreciation of the talent and traditions behind the crafts people of Fez and celebrate the influence of their unique heritage on the wider world. Thejournalists, researchers and artists material has the opportunity to be on a blog, in the pop up museum and or in the final book on the artisans of Fez. By sitting with an artisan and documenting their story they are contributing to the wider community that supports the Fassi crafts.

 Jess Stephens

The driving force behind Exposé Artisanal is the dynamic Jess Stephens who heads up Culture Vultures. As she tells it, "the artisans are wonderful characters and their stories are as interesting as the works they produce."  As she talks her eyes light up and her passion for the project is obvious. 'Even though there are between thirty and forty thousand artisans working in traditional trades and crafts in the Medina, many of the traditions are in danger of being lost - the wooden bucket makers are rare now, as are the comb makers and the last weaver of grass mats has gone. But through this work we will be able to celebrate the personalities of traditional artisans."

Mohammed Saili is the last of the comb makers on Derb Mechatin

The project is not a one way experience. Every one of the artisans involved will be part of the "give back" programme which will see them receive copies of all photographs, publications and documentation.

Another facet of the project is to inspire young Moroccans not only to appreciate the traditional crafts of Fez, but to get involved.

Fund raising for Exposé Artisanal is a crowd funding exercise and although just launched, is off to a great start. You can find out more and donate by visiting: Exposé Artisanal    

If you are in Fez, then this coming Monday there is a buzz event at the Alif Riad at 6pm. You are most welcome to attend.

When: Monday February 3 at 6 PM
Where: ALIF Riad, 6 Derb Drissi, Fez. (If you don’t know where it is, meet at Batha Fountain at 5.50 PM.)


Links

Donations:             Donate here
Culture Vultures:  Support the Fassi Artisans
Facebook:              Artisans of Morocco 

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A Bizarre Project Aimed to Teach Moroccans How to Make Pottery

Millions of dollars being spent on teaching Moroccans to make pottery? At first glance it looked like a joke. But no, on further investigation it turned out to be at least partially true. The idea that Morocco, famous for its pottery needed lessons would seem both fanciful and patronising. Yet pottery lessons were set up, a translator hired and classes got underway...

Things did not go well. Even with millions of dollars in the budget the translator was second rate and failed to understand the English pottery teacher's language and the teacher tried to impose techniques that required materials not available in Morocco. It would have made a mildly amusing comedy sketch

This woeful tale of misguided US aid, came to light when former Georgia Secretary of State and U.S. Senate candidate Karen Handel started an “Only in Washington” website highlighting government waste. Handel posted this item on Aug. 7, 2013.

Former Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel has taken her campaign to rein in wasteful government spending to another level. Handel began a daily blog, titled "Only in Washington," detailing alleged wastefulness by the federal government. Handel said. "While Morocco is no doubt a lovely place, we have families in Georgia that are being hurt by high taxes fuelling out of control spending … What’s worse is that the program was deemed a failure …," she continued.

Almost $27 million for pottery classes? And in Morocco, renowned for its ceramics?

A key part of the project included training Moroccans to create pottery to sell domestically as well as internationally

The investigative website,  PolitiFact, took a look at Handel's claims and found them to be more than a slight distortion of the facts.

According to PoltiFact, much of the background about Handel's claim originated from a similar aggregation of alleged wasteful federal government spending done by U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn. Each year, the Republican senator from Oklahoma releases an oversight report of "unnecessary, duplicative and low-priority projects spread throughout the federal government" in a document called the Wastebook.

Coburn’s Wastebook 2012 highlights the pottery classes as an example of wasteful spending, but notes that only part of the $27 million of a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) project went toward the classes.

In 2009, USAID began a $30 million, four-year plan to help increase the economic competitiveness of Morocco. The plan included five projects, with the Morocco Economic Competitive Project accounting for $27 million, or 90 percent of the overall plan. The Competitive Project, scheduled to run through Sept. 30, 2013, initially included a provision for a $7 million, one-year extension. But because of anticipated budget cuts, a change in mission strategy, complications with the task order and poor implementation of some activities, it is unlikely the project will be extended, according to a December 2011 audit report by a federal inspector general.

The initial goals of the project were to improve the country's business climate, work on ways to use water sustainably for agricultural growth and strengthen workforce development. A key part of the project included training Moroccans to create pottery to sell domestically as well as internationally.

But the pottery program was riddled with problems that verge on the surreal.  For example, a translator hired to translate the instructions from an English-speaking pottery trainer to Arabic-speaking attendees was not fluent in English, which resulted in communication breakdowns. Also, some of the materials used by the pottery trainer were unavailable in Morocco, and participants were unable to replicate the projects. The pottery trainer was seemingly unaware of Moroccan artisanal skill with ceramics.

Ultimately, the audit found that the pottery portion of the competitiveness project was poorly implemented, had limited impact and its intended focus on women and youths was not fulfilled.

It seems astounding that the well-meaning folks in Washington didn't do a little research before designing the program. Even a cursory investigation would have shown them that Moroccan pottery is a reflection of the history of the country. The duality between the Berber heritage and Moorish influence is seen in the techniques, patterns and decorations that adorn the clay objects.

Since the 19th century, artists such as Mohammed Langassi and Boujmaa El Lamali have perpetuated this ancestral craft by giving it a new dimension, propelling the Moroccan pottery to acclaim worldwide.

Very early in the history of mankind clay was used to make utilitarian objects. Since Neolithic times, the Berbers have manufactured rustic pottery using the technique of coiling, a manufacturing process widespread in the Mediterranean basin.

Not until the 5th century BC during Carthaginian rule did the technique spread furrther. With the Roman era (2nd century BC -7th century AD.) the processes were refined and terra sigillata, pots and objects began to be glazed.

Moroccan glazed ceramics date from 814 AD. At that time Idriss II, welcomed thousands of immigrants to Fez from Cordoba among whom were experienced craftsmen skilled in the art.

There are several major categories of Moroccan pottery - town pottery,  primarily the magnificent ceramics manufactured in Fez, Safi and Salé. Then there is distinctive pottery from the rural north and south of Morocco, which were for designed for utilitarian purposes such as cooking and storing water or olive oil.

We respectfully suggest that the Moroccan government allocates some money to send some Moroccan artisans (and a good translator) to the USA to teach them how to make pottery. It certainly would cost a fraction of what the Americans spent.


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Exploring the Fringe at the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music

The health of any good festival can often be judged by the depth of the fringe. A festival fringe is a sign of a healthy interaction between local and visiting artists. Vanessa Bonnin explores the Fes Festival Fringe and finds it in remarkably good form

Jessica Stephens "My mission is arts for all!"

The Queen of the Festival Fringe scene must surely be Jessica Stephens, Sefrou based artist and cultural coordinator of Culture Vultures. Each year her contribution gets bigger and it’s all for a good cause, bringing art and culture to the streets for everyone to experience.

One week into the Sacred Music Festival and its time to touch base with Stephens and find out how the variety of projects Culture Vultures is involved in have been progressing. We find her manning the pop up art space alZahra on the Talaa Kbira.

“There have been so many highlights!” Stephens said. “Flash mobbing in Seffarine Square with Gershom, the Timbre Flaws Choir singing on the doorstep of the pop up – there were 24 of them and with their kids too, one of them sang with a baby strapped to his chest! The flash mob with Amacita – a group of mixed nationality students from the American high school in Fes – was great too, a few of the Moroccan students hadn’t ever been to the Medina and there they were singing in Seffarine Square.

“The mix of audiences for it is what excites me and the deeper into the Medina we go, the further away from the main festival sites, the more it’s appreciated – we’re giving something to the people of the Medina.”

Another project that Stephens coordinated is the Street Carpet, taking place on construction site a fence in Batha and being made by Colleen Cassar.

“The reactions from Moroccan people in the street to Colleen’s street carpet have been amazing, I’ve had to hold back the tears a few times. People are thanking her for bringing art on to the streets.”

This is the essence of what Stephens does – break down the barriers that make art and culture elitist and only open to a select section of society, by making it accessible in a non-threatening environment.

“The pop up is so much more than a shop or a gallery, it’s about sharing – it’s become a platform, a springboard for artist’s projects, performances, garden walks. It’s not about business it’s about cracking open arts and culture for all people across the spectrum. There’s no other space where you get visitors as diverse as a high-class Parisian, a gnawa mallum and a tanner! My mission is arts for all!”

The Street Carpet concept was the brainchild of Colleen Cassar, who was inspired by a similar idea she saw online, but done in cross-stitch.

“When I looked at the construction site fence the mesh didn’t lend itself to cross-stitch. So I thought a boucherite rug would be more appropriate, given that we wanted to work with recycled fabrics and do something Moroccan,” Cassar said.

The project has become a real community effort, with old djellabas, women’s clothing and fabric off cuts being donated for materials, students stopping to help on their way to an exam and people stopping by every day to witness the progress.

“We’ve had a lot of community interest, congratulations and blessings. Children passing saying God bless, people tooting horns and giving us the thumbs up. Some people discuss with me that they’re really very touched that I would choose to build something using a Moroccan technique,” Cassar revealed.

“People ask me, why did you choose here? To me it’s obvious. It’s about beautifying the site and putting art actively on the street.”

As well as bringing art to the streets her project has educational aspects too, opening up discussions about recycling and teaching children to be resourceful in their general and creative lives.

“I have been surprised at people’s delight and their compliments and well wishes, their desire for this kind of art to continue. What the artwork has done, because it’s public, is to include the community. When we’re finished it will be ephemeral art, it will sit there, get rained on, change colour and eventually fall away, but it will be there as a reminder and hopefully as a piece of inspiration for people.”

A more traditional art exhibition, also coordinated by Jessica Stephens has been on display at Dar Tazi during the festival.

Work by Jessica Stephens, Margaret Lanzanetta, Mohammed Charkaouni and Yassine Khaled

Fine art by Omar Belghiti 

Including works by Omar Belghiti, Brahim Lotfi, Alessandro Ferrando, Margaret Lanzanetta, Mohammed Charkaouni and Yassine Khaled, the art works display a diverse range of styles and techniques.

Mohammed Charkaoui is a Fassi artist whose father is an Imam, he has been practicing for many years and now teaches calligraphy. Yassine Khalid is a young contemporary artist from Sefrou with a smart mind and big ambitions. He trained in Tetouan and, for now, lives and works in Sefrou.

"I believe Yassine will go far," Stephens said."Watch this space."

An interesting concept is the one by Fes-based Spaniard Ferrando, whose two mixed media artworks were created to cherish the memory of Ibn Battuta, a Moroccan scholar and traveller, nicknamed the Marco Polo of Islam.

Alessandro Ferrando

One of the pieces involves a complex network of string, representing the imaginary itinerary that Ibn Battuta covered during his lifetime, in an endless symphony of overlapping lines creating an infinite web. The second piece is a tribute to the first trip to Mecca by the famous explorer, who is represented in the piece by a spherical body – the most perfect kind of shape.

Dror Sinai 

Nadia Fennane at Dar Roumana

Another recent fringe event – not coordinated by Stephens this time, but similar in the concept of giving back to the community, was a benefit concert held at Dar Roumana.

With music by Dror Sinai and belly dancing by Nadia Fennane, the well-attended concert raised over 1000dh, plus donations of books, pens and art supplies for the Centre for Protection of Girls in Fes.

Australian choir Timbre Flaws sang at the ALIF Riad

In another part of the Medina, at the ALIF Riad, the cunningly named Australian choir Timbre Flaws had a hit on their hands when they presented their music to a largely Moroccan crowd of around 60 people. The audience included English language students from the American Language Center, which was hosting the event. The 25 strong community choir, from Sydney, sang a variety of gospel and popular songs from around the world.

Choir director Stuart Davis, left, with Australian choir Timbre Flaws

At some points the crowd was encouraged to join in, which they did with enthusiasm. English student Dounia Bennis wrote in her review: "Timber Flaws should have made the concert longer; they shouldn't have sung just few songs because it was a real joy for ears and pleasure for eyes. Moreover, they insist on playing in a perfect harmony, it was so impressive! I’m sure that it must have taken years of hard work and a big effort in order to succeed such performances."

Text Vanessa Bonnin
Photographs: Vanessa Bonnin, Suzanna Clarke

Fes Festival Fringe program
Fes Festival Medina Map
Fes Festival Food! 
Fes Festival Site

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Want to assist the women artisans of the Fez Medina?

An opportunity is available to make a real difference to the lives of local women and expand the range of craft products available.

photo: Vanessa Bonin

The Moroccan Government and the Millenium Challenge Corporation are inviting tenders from suitably qualified people who can facilitate and enhance women's integration into the craft sector in the Fez Medina and help get their products to market.

The project recognises that the inequalities between men and women are significant barriers to economic growth and poverty reduction. The aim is to improve the quality of products, develop new products based on the skills of female artisans and teach them new skills to enhance not only the products but the lives of the women involved.

Applications close on October 15.

For further details (in French), CLICK HERE.

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A Crochet Safari in Morocco

Guerilla Crocheting

Here is something you have probably never considered - a crochet safari to Marrakech where you can take part in some "Guerilla Crocheting"!  Karoline Fleumer is a woman who loves a good yarn - and, as someone who has been crocheting and knitting all her life, she can spin a yarn better than most. When The View from Fez came across Karoline and heard about her "Cool Crochet" expedition, we invited her to explain the concept.

The idea for the Cool Crochet Trip (Crochet Safari is how we call it most of the time) came to our minds when we (my crochet bizniz partner Anke van der Pluijm and I) were in Marrakech working on some new designs for some poofs and cushions. The designs are for Household Hardware, Anke's firm in Amsterdam.

Karoline Fleumer 

We went out for materials in Marrakech, and on our way met a lot of craftsmen and women, making and doing great stuff in dyeing wool, crocheting hats and other bits and pieces. 

Seeing the artisans work and working on our own designs in such a good, creative environment, made us wonder whether maybe other people would like to work on their handicraft skills here too. 

I have been crocheting and knitting all my life and worked as a professional knitter for some years in knitting factories in Holland. Anke has a lovely little hotel in Marrakech, called Chambres d'Amis and this is a great place to stay while going "on safari" for materials and working with the craftladies in the streets. 

You can see some more of my designs on knitagogo 

This April will be our first Cool Crochet Trip, but it is our intention that many will follow, every april and every October. 

We started out with Dutch participants, since of course we first informed all our friends, but now also people from England, Israel and Greece are taking an interest.

Guerilla Crocheting 

Guerilla Crocheting is crocheting that appears "overnight" in public places, covering a statue (giving statues a knitted scarf is popular in Holland during cold winters), decorating trees, or signposts, or the saddles of bikes. It makes the city look more friendly and relaxed with this touch of woollen craftsmanship. On our safari we hope to leave some lovely crocheting here and there too, in Marrakech.

CROCHET - THE BASICS

Crochet is a process of creating fabric from yarn, thread, or other material strands using a crochet hook. The word is derived from the French word "crochet", meaning hook. Hooks can be made of materials such as metals, woods or plastic and are commercially manufactured as well as produced by artisans. Crocheting, like knitting, consists of pulling loops through other loops, but additionally incorporates wrapping the working material around the hook one or more times. Crochet differs from knitting in that only one stitch is active at one time (exceptions being Tunisian crochet and Broomstick lace), stitches made with the same diameter of yarn are comparably taller, and a single crochet hook is used instead of two knitting needles. Additionally, crochet has its own system of symbols to represent stitch types. 

LINKS:

Knitagogo
Chambres d'Amis:
Anke van der Pluijm and Household Hardware Amsterdam

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National Geographic on Fez

The latest edition of National Geographic on line (http://natgeomusic.net) carries an extensive feature on Fez and its Sacred Music Festival, written by Evangeline Kim.

"Where but in Fes," asks Kim, "Morocco's renowned spiritual, cultural, and intellectual center so imbued with powerful Sufi saints' histories over 1200 years, could such an event take place?"

"Giant keyhole-arch palace gates, museum interiors, riad courtyards, and restaurants in the Medina burst with arabesque patterns in intricate mosaic zellij tile work, finessed plaster carvings, and interlacing polygonal geometric or flowering patterned cedar woodwork. Andalusian gardens bloom with fragrance in cooling foliage. By moments, an almost palpable crystalline light seems to illuminate the air while it materializes in the gentle yellow ochre shade covering palace walls and older buildings. Five times a day, polyphonies of the muezzin call to prayer roll across the city."

In two finely-crafted, in-depth articles, Kim gives an excellent overview of the Festival, from the afternoon concerts at the Batha Museum, to the evening events at Bab al Makina, as well as the Festival in the City concerts at Dar Tazi and Bab Boujloud (read the full article here).

It often seems that journalists covering the Festival attend a concert or two and then disappear to submit one short piece. But Ms Kim, it seems, not only explored the Festival and the city itself, but also took the time to meet local people and investigate local institutions.

TIJANI SUFI BROTHERHOOD

Cherif Brahim Tijani (photo: Evangeline Kim)

"Part of Morocco's great charm, interest and attraction lies with her people", explains Ms Kim. "We met the young scion of the great Tijani Brotherhood, Cherif Brahim Tijani. It was his great grand-father the venerable Cheikh Ahmed Tijani, who inspired the spread of Sufism in sub-Saharan Africa and all over the world.

Youssou N'Dour's concert was a tribute to this brotherhood. In his press conference, when urged by the Moroccan radio Chaine-Inter's incisive journalist/producer Aziz Hachimi, "Tell us in one word what Fes signifies for you, Mr. N'Dour? His answer: "Fes Tijani." And, in the medina neighborhood souks surrounding Cheikh Ahmed Tijani's mausoleum, business cards of the redolently aromatic Univers des Herbes (the local Berber pharmacy) and of a great traditional tailor of djellabas and robes, Abdelaziz Cohen, proudly proclaim their addresses as "next to Sidi Ahmed Tijani."

Cherif Brahim is an intriguing Sufi leader for the future. Although still young, he is well-versed in the cultural and spiritual history of the Tijani order, and quietly ponders his forthcoming responsibilities and hopes for Fes and Morocco. With a keen intellect and wisdom far beyond his age, he was in constant demand for interviews about his pride in the festival. He is well worth seeking out for greater knowledge about Sufism and its profound significance in Islam."

THE FES CRAFTS TRAINING & QUALIFICATION CENTRE
The National Geographic team also visited this Centre in Batha that was opened in 2009. Ms Kim reports:

"We met with the center's director, Ahmed Aboujaafar, whose enthusiastic and very careful management planning within the region's first apprenticeship program for artisans promises a greater, ensured socio-economic and cultural future for Fes and Morocco. The center has recently entered into a cultural exchange program with the UK under the auspices of Prince Charles. And will soon open another center in Casablanca. Mr.Aboujaafar has great hopes for and seeks to encourage increased international exchange programs.

The center was established to halt the decline in artisanal training since the beginning of the last century. Craftwork provides work and income to more than 53,000 artisans and a living directly or indirectly to more than 260,000 people in Fes, or 27 percent of the city's total population and 70 percent of the medina's population. It is a critical institution. To have visited the training ateliers and watched the crafts men and women at work was essential to a deeper appreciation of Fes' spiritual environment - especially during the festival.

According to Mr. Aboujaafar, a team of the center's master craftsmen of arabesque zellij, carved woodwork and plaster are already at work here in New York in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In early November this year, the museum will unveil a whole Moroccan royal courtyard as centerpiece in the Islamic Arts halls. It will be breathtaking in visual splendor and the scope of its ingenuities, a true homage to the arts and culture of Fes." (See our story here.)

NEXT YEAR IN FEZ?
Ms Kim sums up her visit to Fez as follows:
"The mark of a superb festival must lie in its capacity to make one long to attend the next edition, to seek answers to lingering questions long after its conclusion - especially about Sufi symbolisms embedded in the ancient decorative arts of Fes. To wish to experience once again the extraordinary beauty of Fes' spiritual culture as it welcomes musicians and visitors from far and near, now remains part of a supreme memory."

Moroccan mosaics at Jerusalem heritage centre

Ha'aretz reports that the David Amar World Centre for North African Jewish Heritage in Jerusalem will be opened on Sunday in the presence of Israeli president, Shimon Peres. The renovation of the building has taken some years, and Moroccan artisans such as zelliji (mosaic artist) Abdulla Dara, have been recruited to work on the project.



When you ask Abdullah Dara his profession, he replies "soccer player." But for the last few months, the 24-year-old from Rabat, Morocco has been working in Jerusalem - in the family business. Dara is an expert in the art of zellij, the Moroccan mosaics that decorate walls and floors. His work involves preparing ceramic surfaces painted in various colors and breaking them with a delicate hammer into thousands of tiny, identical pieces. Then he and other workers arrange the miniature pieces into a giant puzzle to create a beautiful coloured surface. Dara did not hesitate to come to Israel. "We work all over the world," he says. "My brother has already worked in Spain, Dubai and France."

The building was constructed in the mid-19th century by Rabbi David Ben Shimon, founder of the community of North African Jews in Jerusalem who distinguished themselves from the general Sephardic Jewish community. It was used to house new immigrants from the community.

After four years of renovation and hundreds of thousands of stones, which Dara and his friends assembled into dozens of square meters of mosaic, the old building looks like a sultan's palace. It has definitely turned into the most colorful building in Jerusalem.

Authentic Moroccan style

The association of Jewish communities of North Africa, which has reconstructed the building, decided to build it in authentic Moroccan style - complete with an Andalusian-style garden, water fountains, carved and painted doors, ornamentation on the walls, and colored floor tiles.

Since there is not a single contractor in Israel who knows how to do this kind of work, the organisation recruited the help of contractors and artisans from Morocco. However, the Interior Ministry tried to prevent their entry. "They didn't understand that they aren't foreign workers, they're artists. Every time they went home for a two-week holiday, it took me half a year to bring them back," says Haim Cohen, chairman of the association. When the workers finally did arrive, they didn't keep to the schedule. The Israeli employers were so afraid that the mosaics would not be ready on time for the festive ceremony that they prepared an emergency plan: wooden boards with a photograph of the mosaic, meant to serve as a cheap substitute for the real thing.

The site is expected to become one of the city's leading tourist attractions. "The purpose of the center is to preserve the [North African Jewish] heritage through dress, music, vessels, piyyutim [liturgical poems] and prayers...and bring them to the general public," says Cohen. This will be done through exhibitions, a library and a computer center for studying the history of North African Jewish communities.

Photo by: Daniel Bar-On

Moroccan courtyard at New York's Metropolitan Museum

The Metropolitan Museum in New York is installing a new Moroccan courtyard, handcrafted by Moroccan artisans.

photo: New York Times

Navina Haidar of the museum's Islamic Department explained to the New York Times that the institution was embarking on the most ambitious rethinking and rebuilding of its Islamic art galleries in its history, a $50 million endeavor. At the heart of those galleries, which will open this autumn after being closed six years, it dreamed of showcasing the defining feature of Moroccan and southern Spanish Islamic architecture: a medieval Maghrebi-Andalusian-style courtyard, which would function in much the same way such courtyards still do in the traditional houses and mosques of Marrakesh or Fez, as their physical and spiritual center.

A group of highly regarded Moroccan craftsmen, most of whom had never set foot in New York, took up residence at the Met last December, to build the 14th-century-inspired courtyard.

With world attention focused on the Middle East, the courtyard has taken on an unforeseen importance for the museum; for the Kingdom of Morocco itself, which has followed the project closely; and for a constituency of Muslim scholars and supporters of the Met. They hope it will be seen as a symbol, amid potent anti-Islamic sentiment in the United States and Europe, that aesthetic and intellectual commerce remains alive between Islam and the West.

The work is being undertaken by a company of craftsmen, Arabesque, founded in Fez in 1928 and now run by Adil Naji and three of his brothers, who are great-grandsons of the founder.

Over the course of two months a reporter and photographer were invited to watch as the space began to transform slowly from a 21-by-23-foot drywall box — illuminated by an LED panel in the ceiling cleverly mimicking daylight — to a courtyard with zellij (mosaic tile) patterns based on those in the Alhambra palace in Granada, above which rise walls of fantastically filigreed plaster, leading to a carved cedar molding based on the renowned woodwork in the Attarine Medersa in Fez.

See the slideshow here.