Behind the walls of the rose-hued Riad Yima, Moroccan artist and photographer Hassan Hajjaj’s boutique and art gallery in Marrakech’s 12th-century medina, is a realm of pop-art colors, contemporary photography, a myriad of traditional clothing printed in designer logos and Arabic script, and shelves filled with colorful tea tins, all of which are designed by Hajjaj.
Tucked away in a quiet alley in the heart of the Red City, the space beautifully captures the photographer’s distinct visual style, which has propelled him to international stardom and earned him the title of the Andy Warhol of Marrakech.
I had arrived in the Red City to meet Hajjaj and explore the city through his eyes as part of an immersive trip he helped curate in collaboration with Capital One and the members-only art club The Cultivist (in fact, so immersive that at some point, everyone in our group found themselves clad in Hajjaj-designed clothing in front of his camera for a photo shoot in Riad Yima).
However, Marrakech’s multifaceted contemporary art and design scene extends far beyond its most famous district, celebrated for its bustling souks, rich history, and blend of Berber and Islamic architecture. The city has never been more popular with visitors, drawing a record-breaking crowd of over four million visitors just last year.
Hajjaj, born in the city of Larache on Morocco’s Atlantic coast in 1961, moved to London with his family at the age of 12. He credits the decades spent in the British capital as a crucial factor in understanding how the West perceives his homeland. “London taught me how people think about my country and my culture, so I can play with that. And Morocco gave me the roots of who I am as a person,” he says.
But it wasn’t until the mid ‘90s—when a friend asked him to assist during a photo shoot for a British fashion magazine at a riad in Marrakech—that his current visual style began to take shape.
“I was sitting there and realized, hold on, [they were] European photographers, European designers, makeup artists, using Morocco as a backdrop,” Hassan explained. That experience—and the desire to reclaim the cultural narrative—inspired him to “do a fashion shoot of my people.” As a result, the subjects of his photography are often friends or everyday people on the streets of Marrakech (his “Kesh Angels” series of the city’s female henna artists on motorcycles made its New York debut in 2014 to critical acclaim), styled in boldly hued traditional Arabic clothing and accessories printed in designer logos. He has also worked with celebrities such as Billie Eilish, Cardi B, and Madonna, while his work has been exhibited in the permanent collections of museums like London’s Victoria & Albert Museum, the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, Australia, and Marrakech’s Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden.
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