INTRODUCTION

For my final thesis project, I am creating three paintings focusing on the Imazighen women of Morocco. I will use my research to argue that, despite years of Colonization and “Orientalism” in Morocco, the Imazighen (Berber) women successfully preserved their culture and identity.  

A Brief History of Morocco’s Occupation and Colonization

The country of Morocco, North Africa, is located in the Maghreb region (North West Africa). It has a long history of occupation and colonization, bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Algeria to the east, and the Western Sahara to the south. Its strategic location has repeatedly molded its narrative. Many foreigners from the Phoenicians, including the Romans, Vandals, Visigoths, and Byzantine Greeks, came to this area. The Arab conquest of the Maghreb (region in North Africa) started in mid-7th century Morocco, bringing their civilization, Islam, Arabic, and Islamic languages to the area. The indigenous Berber tribes converted to Islam but kept their established practices. Over the years, various ruling dynasties have existed. The country’s location in North Africa had resources that created competition among the European powers in Africa. Ultimately, the French took over in 1912 and made Morocco a protectorate of France. The Kingdom of Morocco reclaimed its independence from France in 1956. This rich history of foreign occupation shaped the region and its people.1

Orientalism’s Role in “Shaping” Morocco

Orientalism is a part of Colonialism, referring to the Western view and understanding of the "Orient" (Middle East and Asia) that frequently depicts the East as inferior and exotic. It rationalized European colonial rule over those regions, making it acceptable to occupy these areas, taking political control, and exploiting them economically. In the midst of this, the indigenous inhabitants often lose their language, religion, culture, art, etc. 

Orientalism conjures up visions of snake charmers, carpet vendors, and veiled women. This fantasy and illusion permit Western cultures to project exotic and unrealistic views of the Orient onto another culture. This is a specific feature of Orientalism, and it facilitated the “vanishing” of the reality of Western society by “dreaming up” a glamourized, stereotypical view of the East, serving as a psychological egress. 2 

Palestinian-American academic and literary critic Edward Said wrote that the West creates an inaccurate depiction of the Orient, considering it “the Other," meaning it is the opposite of the ideal West, seeing them as inferior. Said says that the West created these ideologies of Orient against Occident (the West) as a means of having control over the East.  The Other is everything that is outside of the self. The Self is the intimate (Europe, the West, “us”), and the Other is a stranger (Orient, the East, “them”).  By minimizing the rich diversity of Southwest Asian (Middle Eastern) and North African peoples, Orientalists turn them into a “contrasting image” against which the West seems culturally superior. 3 The stereotype in Orientalism originated during Napoleon’s 1907 occupation of Morocco, North Africa. He intended to differentiate the area known as the Orient as attractive, glamorous, and sensual, but at the same time, less sophisticated and evolved. This sentiment remained with the Europeans. 4

The French Orientalist work of Henri Matisse

 I enjoy modern art and have always admired French artist Henri Matisse’s paintings. Learning about his time spent painting in Morocco piqued my interest because I share some lineage from that region. I began studying Morocco and its Indigenous people for my final thesis

project. I was surprised to learn how different the “real” Moroccan women of that region are compared to the females displayed in Orientalist paintings, particularly the Odalisques. The indigenous people had the ability to preserve their culture under great distress, evolving but not compromising their identity in the modern day.  

Matisse visited Morocco twice, briefly in 1912 and again for several months in 1913, around the same time the French began colonizing the area. He was intrigued with Morocco and had an unbridled enthusiasm about the region and eroticizing about the harem.  He and the other Orientalist artists painted the women of North Africa as sexual objects, more interested in their desires than in morals and proper values. Odalisque with Tambourine (Fig. 1, Harmony in Blue)  and Odalisque (Harmony in Red), from 1926, are two examples of the sensual nature of Matisse’s work from his trip. We see the vivid color, patterns, and geometric shapes in the background, as well as the skimpy, sheer clothing of the harem women. Over eight years, Matisse focused on Odalisque paintings.5

The Berber People of Morocco 

 I have found researching the Berbers fascinating, especially reading about their ability to preserve culture in the face of Colonialism and French Orientalism. The Berbers are the eldest continuously dwelling people of the region they call Tamazgha. They held on to their culture despite considerable historical demands to assimilate within other groups, specifically the Arabs. The majority of Arab Moroccans may be categorized as “Arabized Berbers” due to the process of assimilation during the Arab invasion. Arabs and Berbers are specific ethnic groups in the Maghreb, with the main distinction being that Berbers are considered the region's indigenous people. They predate the Arabs and are primarily differentiated by their unique Berber language (Tamazight) compared to Arabic (spoken by Arabs). Both groups share genetic likeness due to intermingling over time, but cultural practices and linguistic identity predominately set them apart today.6

Even the various types of Imazighen peoples in Morocco – Riffiyen (Rif people) in the north, the Tamazight speakers of the Middle Atlas and High Atlas, and the Shilha (or Shluh) in the southwest – share a commonality, which is their language. Those who continued publicly speaking their indigenous language (a subset of the Afroasiatic language family) were banished to the mountains – the Rif region of northern Morocco, including Tangier. However, the Berbers did not relinquish their culture and identity, continuing to speak their language within their domiciles. 7

The Imazighen women embroidered vivid designs on their indigo headdresses (Fig. 2) and wore intricate silver and amber jewelry. Women were responsible for inventing the art symbols of their identity and displaying them on their bodies. The highly decorated female figure was symbolic; publicly, women are the dominant producers of art. Women’s authority over the visual symbols of Amazign ethnicity gives them strength and status.8  (Fig. 3) Farid Belkahia is a popular male Moroccan artist honoring women’s symbols. Women’s authority is figuratively attached to the design of the artistic symbols of ethnicity. Amazigh women recognize that their status depends upon their capacity to give life and integrate colorful symbols of fecundity into their artwork. In addition, women’s arts also serve as overt hallmarks of their ethnic background. They create and openly wear their visual symbols, such as woven textiles, tattoos, and specific types of jewelry and garb. Amazigh men once frequently wore the wool cloaks and gowns they weave. Women's tattooed faces, hands, and ankles display the branding of their identity. (Fig. 4) The very same symbols are woven into textiles, on bags, painted on ceramics, and seen in their paintings.9   (Fig. 5).

Morocco During and Post-French Colonization (and the Contemporary Amazigh Artists)

During the French protectorate (1912-1956), the government implemented a policy of divide and rule. In 1930, the French created the Dahir Berbère (legislation), where Imazighen was allowed to follow their traditional laws, but the Arabs had to follow the Islamic shariâa law. People argued that Amazigh views and art resulted from ancient Roman and Christian beliefs, hence making the Imazighen people appear more European – this reinforced the French reasoning for colonialism as their obligation to reunify the Imazighen with their European genesis. The policies instituted during the French Protectorate factored into the Arab-Islamic nationalist attitudes in Morocco post-French occupation in 1956. The admission of Arab-Amazigh differences were seen by the Moroccan monarchy/urban Arab bourgeoisie as a colonial remnant and an effort to separate the country. The government emphasized the nation’s common Islamic faith and the Arabic language in an attempt to absorb the Imazighen languages in hopes that an Arab-Islamic identity would strengthen the power of the Monarchy (a successor of Prophet Muhammad). Sadly, throughout the first decade after French colonialism, the government did not acknowledge the Amazigh heritage.10 

The lives of the Amazigh changed under colonialism in many ways; as it pertains to the arts, they imposed their authority through a methodical modernization and regulation of local arts and crafts. However, all of that changed when Morocco obtained its independence from French colonization in 1956, and by 1960, many of the Imazighen people had moved to towns where Arabic was spoken. There was a massive change in Amazigh women’s lives. The metamorphosis of Amazigh aesthetic appearance. Although several of the Amazigh women’s arts, like tattoos, started diminishing, both Amazigh and Arab artists have turned to the artistic heritage of the Imazighen to create a new painting genre that welcomes Morocco’s rich culture and ethnic diversity.11

1Abun-Nasr, J. M. A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period, (Cambridge University Press, 1987) pp.33-34 2 Dr. Nancy Demerdash. “Orientalism” (Khan Academy 2024). 3 Edward W. Said. Orientalism. (Random House Inc. New York and Canada, 1978) p144. 4 Masood Raja. “What is Orientalism?”. (Post Colonial, 2019). 5 James Collins. “Henri Matisse, Inspired by Africa” (Pavilion 54 Magazine, 2020). 6 Ramzi Rouighi, “Race on the Mind.” (Aeon, 2019). 7 “Morocco: Brief history of the Berbers including their origins and geographic location.” (The UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR 2023). 8 Cynthia J. Becker, “Amazigh Arts in Morocco, Women Shaping Berber Identity.”(University of Texas Press, Austin, 2006) P63. 9 Becker p64. 10 Becker p6. 11 Becker p6. 12 Lamia Balafrej. “Chaïbia Talal”. (Aware Archives of Women Artists, Research and Exhibitions, 2019).