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Occidental College

Publication Date

Fall 2023

Program Name

Morocco: Multiculturalism and Human Rights

Abstract

As a country historically subjected to French colonialism and currently the site of a burgeoning street art scene, Morocco is a locus for street art that contributes to the decolonial project and deconstruction of remaining colonial structures left by the French. Drawing from Edward Said’s concept of orientalism, the idea of gaze, and bell hooks’s counter concept of oppositional gaze, this paper seeks to understand how Moroccan street artists use their art to challenge the binary opposition between tradition and modernity constructed during the French Protectorate. I will discuss the theme of temporality, because of street art’s ephemeral nature and the concept of time and history that is addressed throughout several artists’ work, specifically in the dialogue between tradition and modernity. I will continue on to discuss how artists represent Moroccan culture through their art, challenging western depictions of Morocco, and creating a reputation of street art in Morocco. Exploring connections between artists through the Jidar Street Art Festival and social media, this work will seek to understand the ways in which personal connections, collaborations between artists, and a deeper connection to the spaces that street art occupies all uplift Moroccan culture, change orientalist perspectives, and spark conversations that contribute to decolonization.

Disciplines

Aesthetics | African Studies | Art and Design | Contemporary Art | Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies | Social Media | Sociology of Culture

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