Illuminating Morocco's Cultural Landscape
The fifth edition of the Museum Night and Cultural Spaces event took place on June 23rd, captivating several cities across Morocco from 5 PM to midnight. Organized by the National Foundation of Museums (FNM), this national celebration was dedicated to photography, marking the bicentennial of the invention of this transformative medium that has profoundly altered the ways in which we represent the world around us.
In Casablanca, numerous museums, galleries, and cultural spaces opened their doors to the public free of charge. The event featured a diverse program that included the Museum of Photography and Visual Arts, AA Gallery, Anfa Park – French Institute of Morocco, Artem Gallery, Eden Art Gallery, TGCC Foundation for Art and Culture, Atelier 21, Nadar Gallery, French Institute of Morocco, Gallery 121, and Shart Gallery.
Highlighting Casablanca's New Museum of Photography
A standout moment of this edition was the inauguration of the Museum of Photography and Visual Arts in Casablanca, designed by the esteemed Japanese architect Tadao Ando. The museum launched with an inaugural exhibition focusing on Casablanca and its people. Among the showcased works, around twenty pieces were generously loaned by the Arab World Institute in Paris, while nearly three hundred were contributed by Nathalie Locatelli, founder of the 127 Gallery in Marrakech, a leading space dedicated to contemporary photography in the Maghreb region. Nathalie was supported in this curatorial endeavor by Abdelaziz Idrissi, head of the museum department at the FNM, Soufiane Er-Rahoui, curator of the National Museum of Photography, and photographers Khalil Nemmaoui and Daoud Aoulad Syad.
The exhibition features artworks from a diverse array of talented photographers, including Khadija El Abyad, Mehdi Ait El Mallali, Leïla Alaoui, Ahmed El Almi, Zineb Andress Arraki, and many others, showcasing the rich tapestry of Moroccan visual storytelling.
Additionally, L’Atelier 21 art gallery spotlighted one of Hicham Benohoud's most impactful series, _La Salle de classe_, created between 1994 and 2002 while he taught plastic arts in a high school in Marrakech. This work emerged from the very space where he practiced his craft, transforming the classroom into both an educational venue and a creative laboratory. As Nadia Amor, director of L’Atelier 21, noted, "Upon discovering these photographs, one often feels as if they have undergone manipulations or significant post-production work. However, everything was captured at the moment of the shot." She emphasized that the simplicity of the elements used—string, tables, sheets of paper—enabled Benohoud to create strange, sometimes unsettling scenarios that challenge our perception of reality.
In 2025, the monograph _The Classroom_, dedicated to this acclaimed series, won the prestigious Paris Photo–Aperture PhotoBook Award. Today, Benohoud's work is housed in several major international institutions, including the Tate in London and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid.
The event not only attracted seasoned art enthusiasts but also new visitors, like Taha, an IT consultant who was experiencing L’Atelier 21 and Benohoud's work for the first time. He expressed his amazement, stating, "This is my first visit here. During the last edition of Museum Night, I attended other exhibitions. I was unfamiliar with this artist, but I was impressed by the quality of his work, especially how he integrated children into his artistic approach. These are timeless pieces."
Over the years, Museum Night and Cultural Spaces has established itself as a major event on the Moroccan cultural calendar. By widely opening the doors of museums, galleries, and heritage institutions, it enhances public access to culture, fosters interactions between artists and the community, and strengthens citizens' engagement with their heritage.
As reported by fr.le360.ma.
