“An Urban Twist” from Morocco @ Coningsby Gallery

Larbi Cherkaoui

Works by Moroccan artists Larbi Cherkaoui, Kim Bennani, Said Yaghfouri, Zineb Echiguer and Said Qodaid are on display at the Coningsby Gallery next week, to mark the launch of a new online gallery dedicated to contemporary art from Morocco. Based in London and Rabat, Moroccan Fine Art is run by  Nadia Echiguer and Adnan Bennani, currently represents nine artists, and offers a variety of consultancy services. More details here.

Show: 7th-12th May

Opening hours: Mon-Sat, 11-6

Coningsby Gallery
30 Tottenham Street, London
W1T 4RJ

Meetings in Marrakech @ Leighton House Museum

El Glaoui (2011)

This exhibition brings together paintings by Sir Winston Churchill and Moroccan artist Hassan El Glaoui. The unlikely pairing comes about thanks to Churchill’s friendship with El Glaoui’s late father, who just so happened to be the Pasha of Marrakech, Hadj Thami El Glaoui. It was Churchill – himself an avid painter and lover of Morocco – who persuaded the Pasha to let his son study painting in Paris in the 1940s. The rest is history; El Glaoui has had exhibitions all over the world, and continues to paint from his home in Marrakech. This exhibition is a record and a celebration of the exchange between the two families, which continues to this day.

You can read the full story here and find out more about the artist at his website.

The show continues until 31st March.

Opening hours:
Daily 10-5.30, closed Tuesdays

Leighton House Museum
12 Holland Park Road, London
W14 8LZ

Berber weaving @ Brunei Gallery

Kharita Carpet Tapestry Weaving

Hidden away in the labyrinth of the University of London’s Russell Square campus is SOAS’s gallery space, the Brunei Gallery. It’s primarily a university gallery, but don’t let that put you off – while the exhibitions are geared towards student learning, they are also open to the public, and are often well put together and thought-provoking. This autumn sees a new exhibition of historical and contemporary textiles from Morocco, Weaving the Threads of Livelihood:  the aesthetic and embodied knowledge of Berber weavers. The website promises hands-on opportunities to touch many of the textiles, handle the tools used to make them, and even have a go at weaving yourself.

Show:
14th Oct – 10th Dec

Opening hours:
Tues-Sat, 10.30-5

Brunei Gallery
Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London
WC1H 0XG

Reflections on the self: Five African Women Photographers @ Southbank Centre

ID Series (2003) - Senayt Samuel

As part of celebrations for the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day, Christine Eyene has curated an exhibition of work by five female photographers of African origin, now on show at the Royal Festival Hall.

The show explores the women’s engagement with the politics of representation through their use of visual narrative and portraiture, and their experiences both in Africa and the diaspora. The artists are: Hélène Amouzou (Togo; lives and works Belgium); Majida Khattari (Morocco; lives and works France); Zanele Muholi (South Africa); Senayt Samuel (Eritrea, lives and works in the UK); and Nontsikelelo Veleko (South Africa).

The show continues until 3rd April, and if you head down this Friday (18th March) at 7.30pm, there’s an introductory talk by Christine – more info about this and the show here.

Opening hours:
Daily, 10–11

Spirit Level, Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre
Belvedere Road, London
SE1 8XX

Arab Cinema @ Tate Modern

Still from 'Domestic Tourism II' (2009) - Maha Maamoun

Tate Modern’s film programming takes an interesting turn this month with a season of Arab Cinema. My past experiences with Tate’s film events have been mixed, to say the least: technical malfunctions and impenetrable, self-congratulatory chit-chat masquerading as ‘discussion’, not to mention boring films. This earnestly titled season, ‘Mapping Subjectivity: Experimentation in Arab Cinema from the 1960s to Now’, may sound similarly unpromising. However, if you click through to the descriptions of some of the films, they do sound rather engaging, and the timing couldn’t be better as far as current affairs goes, so I’m hoping to give a few of them a try. The series kicks off this Friday with an Egyptian double-bill from the 1970s, and continues by way of Algeria and Morocco, plus films from the Middle East.

4th – 27th March

Various show times – see listings here.

Tate Modern
Bankside, London
SE1 9TG