26.06.2024 | The Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt is presenting the unique and influential work of the Casablanca Art School from July 12 to October 12, 2024, in a first major exhibition, one that is long overdue.
CASABLANCA ART SCHOOL: A POSTCOLONIAL AVANT-GARDE 1962–1987
JULY 12 – OCTOBER 13, 2024
Just a few years after Morocco gained independence in 1956, a vibrant center of cultural renewal developed in Casablanca. The main representatives of this innovative school—Farid Belkahia (1934–2014), Mohammed Chabâa (1935–2013), Bert Flint (1931–2022), Toni Maraini (1941) and Mohamed Melehi (1936–2020), together with students, teachers, and associated artists—soon became a central driver of the development of a postcolonial modern art in the region. Their aims combined an openness toward local history with the new social reality.
THE SCHIRN IS PRESENTING THE UNIQUE AND INFLUENTIAL WORK OF THE CASABLANCA ART SCHOOL IN A FIRST MAJOR EXHIBITION, ONE THAT IS LONG OVERDUE
They included a reassessment of the relationship between art, handicrafts, design, and architecture within the local context in dialogue with the ideas of the Bauhaus manifesto. This was achieved by combining artistic influences from Western metropolises with elements of the vernacular legacy which had been undermined during the colonial era. The Schirn will be presenting some 100 works, including large-format, colorful, abstract (mural) paintings, graphic experiments, and everyday objects, as well as comprehensive documentary material, revealing a specifically Moroccan art scene with transnational aspirations.
An exhibition organized by Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt, Tate St Ives, and Sharjah Art Foundation
Press information of the exhibition "Casablanca Art School. A Postcolonial Avant-Garde 1962–1987"
Malika Agueznay, Untitled, 1986, Mixed media on canvas, 120 x 87 cm, © The artist. Courtesy of private collection, Marrakech
Mohamed Ataallah, Composition, Tanger, c.1965, Acrylic paint on canvas, 127 x 94 cm, © Estate Atala. Courtesy of private collection, Marrakech
Farid Belkahia, Cuba Si, 1961, Oil paint on paper on plywood, 62.6 x 44.6 cm, © Foundation Farid Belkahia. Tate: Purchased with funds provided by the Middle East North Africa Acquisitions Committee 2016 / VG-Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2024
Mohammed Chabâa, Untitled, 1977, Acrylic paint on canvas, 75 x 95 cm, © Mohammed Chabâa estate. Tate: Purchased from Nadia Chabâa with funds provided by the Nicholas Themans Trust and the Middle East North Africa Acquisitions Committee 2022, Image © Fouad Mazouz
Anna Draus-Hafid, Symphonie forestière (Symphony of the Forest), 1982, Tapestry, 215 × 205 cm, Artwork © Collection of the artist, Image © Sharjah Art Foundation, Photo: Shanavas Jamaluddin
Mustapha Hafid, I belong to you, 1975, Mixed media on canvas, 68,5 x 80 cm, © Collection of the artist
Mohamed Hamidi, Composition, 1971, Acrylic paint on canvas, 99 x 63.5 cm, © The artist. Courtesy of private collection, Marrakech / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2024
Houssein Miloudi, Untitled, 1967, Acrylic paint on board, 119 x 197 cm, © The staete of the artist. Courtesy of private collection, Marrakech
Mohamed Melehi, Départ (Departure), 1964, Acrylic paint on canvas, 183 x 143 cm, Mujah Maraini-Melehi / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2024
Mohamed Melehi, Untitled, 1969, Oil on canvas, 75 x 111 cm, © Mohamed Melehi Estate. Courtesy of private collection, Marrakech / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2024
Mohamed Melehi, Untitled, 1983, Cellulose paint on wood, 150 x 200 cm, © Mohamed Melehi Estate / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2024
Chaïbia Tallal, Cérémonie de Mariage (wedding ceremony), 1983, Oil on canvas, 180 x 180 cm, © The estate of the artist. Courtesy of private collection, Marrakech
The Italian artist Agostino Bonalumi, (standing in the center) visiting Mohamed Melehi’s Painting Workshop and students at the Casablanca Art School in 1965. At his left are Farid Belkahia and Mohammed Chebaa, Mohamed Melehi is seated. © Toni Maraini Archive, for kind concession of The Agostino Bonalumi Milan Archive
Student working in Mohammed Chabâa's graphic design studio, Casablanca Art School, Casablanca, Morocco, 1960s, Photo: Mohamed Melehi / Mohamed Melehi Estate
View of the Student Annual Exibition of the Arab League Park, June 1968, Photo © Mohammed Chabâa archives/estate
Programmatic Manifesto exhibition Présence Plastique, Place du 16 Novembre, Casablanca, Juni 1969, Photo: Atala estate/archives
Mural in progress, Asilah Moussem Culturel, 1978, Photo: Mohamed Melehi / Mohamed Melehi Estate
Mural by Mohammed Chabâa, Asilah Cultural Festival, Asilah, Morocco, 1978, Photo: Mohamed Melehi / Mohamed Melehi Estate