A place of "
despair
" turned into a place of "
hope
" rejoiced Mehdi Qotbi, artist and president of the National Foundation of Museums of Morocco.
On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of this foundation, a new space dedicated to contemporary northern Moroccan arts opened on December 23 in the heart of the Tangier medina, within the walls of the former Kasbah prison.
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This new museum is erected on the old Kasbah prison, built from the 17th century.
It is one of the major components of the eponymous Palace, underlined Abdelaziz El Idrissi, director of the Mohammed VI museum of modern and contemporary art, during the opening of the first exhibition entitled “
The school of the north
”.
The civil prison ceased its activity in the 1970s. A project followed to rehabilitate and enhance the medina of Tangier, the historic district of the city located near the port.
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The project aims first of all to rehabilitate the site while safeguarding its authenticity, as explained by Mzibra Hajar, the project manager within the Agency for the Promotion and Development of the North (APDN), according to the
maptanger site.
The place is the fruit of the hard work of architects and scenographers who wished to preserve this architectural and historical jewel to enrich the cultural and museum offer of the largest cosmopolitan city in Morocco.
A place of exchange and hope
“
I am happy that a place, which was a place of despair, a prison, today becomes a place of hope with artists. A place that also participates in teaching people and informing them of what the northern school is; this school which brought a lot to Morocco. Today, the National Museum Foundation is helping to make known these exceptional artists from this school
”indicated Mehdi Qotbi, artist and president of the National Museum Foundation at the microphone of
Médias24
.
An important place that brings light in a difficult context: "
Art and culture remain there to help us, enlighten us and give us hope
" continues the artist.
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The first exhibition is therefore dedicated to "
The school of the North
»And refers to those artists who brought their techniques and knowledge to Morocco, playing a privileged role in relations between Africa and Europe during the second half of the 20th century.
This exhibition of 70 works of art from the collection of the National Museum Foundation of Morocco and some loans from the Ministry of Culture and the Royal Academy highlights the cultural specificities of this region, with artists such as Mohamed Serghini, Mohamed Ataallah, Mekki Meghara or even Abdelkrim Ouazzani.
Artists from the same generation who were among the first to study at the National Institute of Fine Arts in Tetouan, participating in the revival of plastic and visual arts in the North, stronghold of Moroccan artistic creation.