#maghreb textiles

[livethrushit]

wool tapestry 'pictorial tapestry of five arab women" from tunisia / uw-madison's helen louise allen textile collection

[fashionbooksmilano]

De soie et d'or Broderies du Maghreb

catalogue par Joëlle Lemaistre, Marie-France Vivier, Mohamed Bennouna, et al.

Joël Cuénot, Paris 1996, 127 pages ,99 ill.couleur, 24x16,8 cm.,Broché,  ISBN  9782906062917

euro 90,00

email if you want to buy booksinprogressmilano@yahoo.it

Exposition organisée par l'Institut du Monde Arabe en partenariat avec le Musée national des arts d'Afrique et d'Océanie, 11 juin-29 septembre 1996

Cet art textile, soulignent les organisateurs, traduit une culture extraordinairement riche et mélangée où coexistent le symbole paléolithique de la main protectrice, la technique antique, le vetement drapé de l’époque classique, les modes de l’Espagne andalouse et de la Cour d’Istanbul avec les technologies les plus modernes

29/01/22

orders to: booksinprogressmilano@yahoo.it

ordini a: booksinprogressmilano@yahoo.it

twitter: @fashionbooksmi

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[rimadadenji]

Rima Dadenji, beautiful Diaba (representing Senegalese elegance!), Fes el-Bali, Morocco, 2017

[rabbitcruiser]

Almería, Spain (No. 2)

The origin of Almería is connected to the 9th-century establishment of the so-called Republic of Pechina (Bayyana) some kilometres to the north, which was for a time autonomous from the Cordobese central authority: the settlement of current-day Almería initially developed as a humble trading port of Pechina known as Al-Mariyya Bayyana. Pechina and its maritime port experienced divergent fortunes, and while the former progressively depopulated, the latter became the base of the Caliphal navy after 933, during the rule of Abd-ar-Rahman III. Furthermore, in 955, Abd-ar-Rahman III decided to erect the walls. A silk industry consisting of hundreds of looms and feeding itself from the mulberry trees planted in region, fostered Almería's economy. Almería also became an important slave trade hub during the caliphal period.

In the wake of the collapse of the Caliphate of Córdoba in the early 11th century, Almería detached from Cordobese authority towards 1014 and became ruled as an independent taifa under Slavic kinglets. It submitted to the Taifa of Valencia in 1038, yet it soon became independent as a new taifa, ruled by the Arab Banu Sumadih until 1091, when it fell to Almoravid control. This allowed the city's economy to insert itself into the trade networks of the Almoravid empire. Building upon the previous development during the caliphal period, Almería reached a degree of historical relevance unmatched in the rest of its history throughout the 11th and 12th centuries, becoming the third-largest city of Al-Andalus. Almería imported indigo dye and wool from the Maghreb and linen from Egypt, while it exported copper to Fez and Tlemcen as well as its highly sought textiles.

Source: Wikipedia

[the-iron-orchid]

Can't decide about Asra and the Al-Nazars being form Maghreb or Middle East. What’s you take on it? I would love to know! ;) What are some other choices which could fit in with them and Zadith?

Oooh, that's a very interesting one! Westerners so often take "Africa" to mean Sub-Saharan or West Africa, without considering that Africa is a huge and vastly diverse continent that includes a large Arab and Imazighen population. (By the same token, we also often take 'Arab' to strictly mean 'from the Middle East', specifically from the Arabian Peninsula, when it's far more complex than that...)

Note: while the term Berber(s) is commonly used for the various indigenous nomadic peoples of North Africa, it is considered to be derogatory, derived from the same Greek word as 'barbarian'. The terms Amazigh (singular)/Imazighen (plural) are replacing it in common usage.

I personally hc the Al-Nazars as Levantine Arabs, but this is purely in tribute to my lovely friends from Syria and Lebanon (again, I'm very lucky to have friends who will answer my silly questions for the sake of little fictional guys!). As a result, I'm better able to add details to my characterization and writing based on having a tiny bit more knowledge about Levantine culture.

That said, I do feel like the Maghreb is sorely underrepresented in general! The vivid patterns of Mauritanian textiles are a great fit for Asra's personal style, after all. The traditional folk dress of Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco is also especially stunning in my opinion, and Imazighen nomadic culture is a great fit for Asra's canonical wanderlust.

Obviously, this is just skimming the surface, but I'd be really excited to see more Maghreb hcs for the Al-Nazars!

(And as always, I welcome corrections and additions from those more knowledgeable about the subject than I!)

[zamancollective]

Hashish: A (Jewish) History 

By Jordan Adelipour

Additional Writing and Illustration by Sophie Levy and Evan Mateen

Hashish, the emblematic, mystified drug of the Middle-East, is just hemp. Yes, the cannabis kind. While marijuana constitutes the buds of the flowering plant, hashish is made of its resin. 

Since the inception of its recreational use in southwestern Asia, hashish has functioned as a hallmark of many vital literary works and cultural movements across history. In One Thousand and One Arabian Nights, one character is found sleeping in front of the city gates and guards approach him, asking if he had passed out because he was stoned. Some Rastafarians believe the burning bush that Moses saw was really an innuendo for cannabis. There is even a conspiracy that in C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, the chocolates the Witch gives one of the children were actually laced with hashish, referring to them as “Turkish Delights.”

But how did this plant gain its status as one of the most popular drugs in southwestern Asia and the Maghreb? Turns out it all started with a cult of pothead assassins.

origins and distribution

From the mid-1050s to the mid-1270s, there existed a secretly-practiced sect of Shi’a Islam found in the Nizari Ismaili “state,” a network of settlements and fortresses in Syria and Persia. Nizari Ismailis observed a strain of religious practice they attributed to the ways of the descendants of Muhammad’s daughter Fatimah. The followers of this sect often took on the role of what we would today call assassins. As crusaders hailing from the north became increasingly present in the cities dotting southwestern Asia, members of this cult developed a practice of silently killing crusaders then retreating into hiding. The sect’s followers were called asāsiyyūn (أساسيون) which originally meant “faithful people,” but after a story formed about the group’s leader marketing hashish as an alleged entry ticket to heavenly transcendence, the members’ title was mistranslated to mean “men of hashish” or “hashish eaters.”  By the time Shakespeare came around, he turned the Italian-influenced noun “assassini” into a verb (something he always loved to do), creating the words “assassinate” and “assassination.” 

The first known record of hashish consumption in the Middle East occurred around 900 CE. Over time, as other empires came through, conquered, and absorbed cultural elements from populations in southwestern Asia, hashish became included in an inventory of exotic trade goods and was taken back to empires’ capitals. In the thirteenth century, Genghis Khan spread the use of hashish across the Asian continent. Sheikh Haydar, a Sufi monk living in Safavid Persia in the fifteenth century, recorded an account of ingesting cannabis resin directly. Hashish made its way to Europe in the nineteenth century, when Napoleon introduced it to the French after his army’s campaign in Egypt and Syria.

in contemporary mizrahi contexts

Following the spread of hashish to the Maghreb, Morocco eventually became one of the biggest exporters of this substance. Its commonplace use across North Africa, where hashish smoking remains prevalent today, can arguably be attributed to a historical relationship between the land’s Amazigh and Jewish inhabitants.

Dr. Doron Danino, an expert on Moroccan Jewry, expanded upon this interesting connection in an interview published in the Times of Israel. In reference to the nature of Moroccan society in the seventeenth century, Danino explained,

“The Jews, in general, did not grow cannabis, [...] But they received a monopoly from the king for the sale of tobacco in Morocco, and that included sales of the cannabis plant and the hashish produced from it.”

Because the rural Amazigh farmers who grew cannabis often did not speak Arabic, a pragmatic partnership developed between these cultivators and Jewish merchants, who acted as middlemen in urban trade deals. According to Danino, “Jews used to speak several languages, and they had a business sense, which made it a mutually beneficial partnership.” 

Apart from their role in selling hashish, it remains unclear whether or not the recreational use of cannabis was common among Moroccan Jews. However, further inspection of Jewish texts can reveal possible connections between hashish, biblical Jewish lore, and ritual practice.

a haredi rabbi blessing cannabis as kosher, 2016

in jewish texts and ritual observance

The use of hashish and cannabis in Jewish tradition is controversial, to say the least. The Tanakh includes numerous mentions of a grain or spice called qaneh-bosem (קְנֵה-בֹשֶׂם). In the Book of Exodus, G-d instructs Moses to carry this plant with him as part of a spice collection for anointing ritual sites, deeming it too holy for use by laymen (Exodus 30:22-33). 

Most translations describe qaneh-bosem as “sweet cane,” which is, at most, a vague estimation of a proper translation, since no specific plant has been definitively attributed to this Aramaic word. The identity of qaneh-bosem is widely disputed- but some researchers and users of cannabis contend this mystery spice could be cannabis. It is described as an “aromatic grass” (which is exactly what I would call cannabis) that came from distant lands, most likely being northeastern India. The plant is noted to grow between three to five feet tall (*ahem ahem), growing in marshy areas (Jeremiah 6:20). 

Obstacles in identifying biblical plants are also indebted to the Torah’s early standing as a completely oral tradition for many years, which can, of course, lead to some mistranslations. In his book The Living Torah (1981), Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan proposes that the translation of qaneh-bosem as “cane plant” is, in fact, incorrect, having resulted from a misattribution to the Egyptian word kalabos- a cane that grew on the Nile. 

Jewish utilizations of hemp are also mentioned in medieval rabbinic texts and more contemporary records of Jewish religious practice. Yosef Glassman, a geriatrician living in Boston, has extensively researched the use of cannabis in Shabbat rituals. He cites the Talmud as a record of Jewish people using hemp to make textiles for tallitot and tzitzit. Separately, Ashkenazi rabbinic authorities characterize cannabis as kitniyot during Passover, so smoking hashish or eating hemp seeds (which have no psychoactive effect) during the grain and rice-free week would be heavily frowned upon. Still, there is no refuting that Hashem did say, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed—to you it shall be for food. (Genesis 1:29)” 

In 450 BCE, Herodotus wrote in Histories that Persians discussed diplomatic policies while drunk, then rehashed while sober (or vice versa) to see if they still held fast to their earlier claims. Similarly, a cornerstone of Jewish identity is a fierce love of argument and discussion- coupled with intoxication, of course. At least that’s what I saw that one time at Chabad. But I guess now we have proof that it wasn’t the first time Jews have taken things a step further than wine.

Jordan Adelipour is a senior at Babson College majoring in Business. He has a profound fondness for Japanese culture and Reddit. He has approximate knowledge of many things.

references

https://books.google.com/books?id=RAwg47G0M2IC&pg=PA68#v=onepage&q=bosem&f=false

https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=0ZkWAAAAYAAJ&hl=en&pg=GBS.PA147

https://www.narconon.org/drug-information/hashish-history.html

https://www.haaretz.com/jewish/biblical-roots-of-jews-and-grass-1.5298099

https://www.etymonline.com/word/assassin

https://www.etymonline.com/word/hashish?ref=etymonline_crossreference

https://books.google.com/books?id=GtCL2OYsH6wC&pg=PA21&dq=history+Hashishin+killed+caliphs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CBwhyyoualwayslyingQ6AEwAGoVChMI67L3hf2_yAIVQZQNCh2D4Qtk#v=onepage&q=history%20Hashishin%20killed%20caliphs&f=false

Burman, Edward (1987). The Assassins – Holy Killers of Islam. Wellingborough: Crucible. P.70

[artcontemporainafricain]

PORTRAIT | AKAA : l’artiste malien Abdoulaye Konaté invite à la découverte de la création africaine

See on Scoop.it - Art africain contemporain

"Ses tapisseries, peintures, sculptures peuplent des collections et musées dans le monde entier. Né en 1953 à Diré, au Mali, Abdoulaye Konaté figure parmi les plus grands noms de l’art contemporain. AKAA, la plus grande foire française pour les artistes d’Afrique et de ses diasporas, accueille neuf œuvres monumentales du maître des toiles de bazin tissées avec leur gamme de couleurs infinie. Jusqu’au 23 octobre, au Carreau du temple au cœur de Paris. Entretien.

�� RFI : Vos œuvres majestueuses, exposées ici à AKAA par la Galerie 38 de Casablanca, représentent une sorte de traversée des cultures du Sahel et du patrimoine Touareg et Peul. À travers vos tableaux, créés à partir du bazin, ce tissu malien traditionnel, vous avez cherché à rendre hommage à l’art du tissage de cette région, mais aussi aux femmes qui jouent un très grand rôle dans la fabrication et la transmission de ce savoir-faire.

  Abdoulaye Konaté : Sur cette œuvre, par exemple, vous avez un symbole dogon, en même temps, vous avez des cercles en rond qui sont des éléments brodés par les femmes marocaines. Et au centre de la pièce, vous avez le tissage d’un grand maître marocain, l’un des derniers grands maîtres des tissages textiles au Maroc. Avec le bazin qu’on trouve au Mali, j’essaie de fusionner tout cela pour rendre visible ce fil rouge qui passe entre le Maghreb et le Sahel."

...

  > Début de l'article de Siegfried Forster publié sur rfi.fr à retrouver en intégralité sur https://bit.ly/3NxjSIm

Karin Barlet's insight:

Sur la foire AKAA, voir aussi :

- "Avec la foire Akaa, l’art contemporain africain s’ancre à Paris" , Le Point https://bit.ly/3sVsH5b - "EN IMAGES. Foire d'art contemporain africain AKAA : quand ils créent en recyclant" , France TV INFO https://bit.ly/3FCfTYU - "Culture : la foire Akaa, vitrine de l’art contemporain africain, revit à Paris", RFI https://bit.ly/3h9kJms - "Foires Paris + et AKAA : les coups de cœur du « Monde Afrique »", Le Monde https://bit.ly/3UiqeNJ

[whencyclopedia]

THE ROMAN EMPIRE IN WEST AFRICA: 

AT its fullest extent, the Roman Empire stretched from around modern-day Aswan, Egypt at its southernmost point to Great Britain in the north but the influence of the Roman Empire went far beyond even the borders of its provinces as a result of commerce and population movements. Contrary to popular belief which holds that the Sahara Desert was an impossible obstacle to trade prior to the Middle Ages, the Romans had a robust and dynamic network of connections to Sudanic and Sub-Saharan Africa. Slaves, gold, foodstuffs, and spices were transported from complex urban settlements on the Niger river, onwards to oasis cities in the Sahara, before finally reaching Rome’s bustling ports on the coast of North Africa. Going in the opposite direction, gemstones, textiles, and coins reached cities along the fertile banks of the Middle Niger.

Classical Greek and Roman writers refer to all of Sudanic and Sub-Saharan Africa as 'Aethiopia', while the term 'Africa' originally referred only to the Maghreb region on the northwestern coast of the continent. Most Aethiopians in the Roman Empire likely came from East Africa through Egypt and Nubia but new evidence has also highlighted the role of trade and military interactions between West Africa and the Roman Empire.

Read More 

[reseau-actu]

Les parts de marché à l'exportation de la France sur le continent africain ont diminué de moitié depuis 2000, passant de 11 % à 5,5 % en 2017

L'Afrique est symptomatique de la perte de compétitivité de l'export français. Longtemps la France a occupé une position privilégiée sur le continent, dans les pays francophones et au Maghreb en particulier. Et pourtant, l'an dernier, l'Allemagne lui a ravi le statut de premier fournisseur européen. La balance commerciale avec l'Afrique reste excédentaire, mais à quelque 3 milliards d'euros en 2017, l'excédent est en nette baisse par rapport aux deux années précédentes. Comme le souligne une étude de l'assureur-crédit Coface, les parts de marché à l'exportation de la France en Afrique ont diminué de moitié depuis 2000, passant de 11 % à 5,5 % en 2017. «La tendance est générale, y compris dans les économies dynamiques comme le Ghana et le Nigeria, et très marquée dans les pays francophones, où la France détenait 25 % de parts de marché contre 12 % aujourd'hui», note Ruben Nizard, de la Coface.

Entre 2001 et 2017, la part de marché chinoise en Afrique s'est envolée de 2 % à 18%. Elle progresse dans quasiment tous les domaines, sauf l'agriculture

Dans le détail, le Maroc, l'Algérie et la Tunisie absorbent la moitié du commerce franco-africain, suivis des deux grandes économies africaines, le Nigeria et l'Afrique du Sud, puis de l'Égypte et de la Côte d'Ivoire. Madagascar représente aussi une part non négligeable, pour ses précieuses gousses de vanille. En termes de produits, plus du tiers des importations françaises concerne les combustibles et 10 % les textiles, qui atteignaient le double en 2001. Côté export, ajoute l'expert de Coface, on retrouve les mêmes spécificités que dans le reste du monde, «avec un poids moindre pour l'automobile et l'aéronautique, la présence de combustibles raffinés et beaucoup d'exportations de céréales, surtout le blé».

Si le savoir-faire tricolore vient de se faire doubler par l'Allemagne et subit aussi le regain de compétitivité espagnol - notamment sur les machines -, sa dégringolade est à mettre en parallèle avec la montée en puissance de la Chine et d'autres émergents comme la Turquie sur le continent africain. Entre 2001 et 2017, la part de marché chinoise s'est envolée de 2 % à 18 %. Elle progresse dans quasiment tous les domaines, sauf l'agriculture. Les entreprises chinoises vendent de plus en plus de machines-outils et d'appareils électriques.

«La France enregistre des pertes sur les secteurs phares  biens d'équipement, automobile et pharmacie  , à l'exception de l'aéronautique»

«La France enregistre des pertes sur les secteurs phares - biens d'équipement, automobile et pharmacie -, à l'exception de l'aéronautique», ajoute Ruben Nizard. À souligner, la percée de l'Inde sur les produits pharmaceutiques grâce aux génériques. Quant à la Russie et l'Ukraine, elles sont devenues des fournisseurs importants de blé, aidées par la forte dépréciation de leurs devises.

L'assureur-crédit estime toutefois que la France pourrait rattraper son retard et retrouver son niveau d'avant la crise de 2008, soit 7 % de parts de marché. En prenant plusieurs variables - PIB, langue parlée, proximité du système juridique, distance entre les deux pays -, Coface identifie des gains potentiels dans 27 pays sur 53 analysés. Ces marges de progression se situent dans les pays du Maghreb, proches géographiquement, et ceux ayant un système légal d'origine française, en particulier dans la bande sahélienne (Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger et Tchad). Mais aussi en Afrique de l'Est, où la présence française est relativement faible, notamment en Zambie et en Éthiopie - un gros marché de 100 millions d'habitants, en plein essor.

[livethrushit]

[droppedfromjupiter]

• Moroccan colors • 📍Spice souk. Learn about the unique spices you can find in Africa, how to use them in your meal preps and take some souvenirs to your loved ones. Take your time to enjoy the colors and smells✨. Best items to shop in Morocco🇲🇦: 1. Argan Oil 2. Rose water (@ Fez) 3. Lanterns (every type you can imagine) 4. Rugs and carpets 5. Textiles ( it can be expensive, handmaded by women) 6. Olives and dates 7. Spices (of course!) Remember to bargain! - Mercado de especies. Aprende de la cultura marroquí a traves de sus tradicionales mercados. Conoce las diferentes especies y cómo usarlas. Son el recuerdo perfecto para tus seres queridos🥰. Mientras puedes disfrutar de sus colores y olores. Top cosas que comprar en Marruecos🇲🇦: 1. Aceite de argán (orgánico, 100% puro y sirve para mil cosas) 2. Agua de rosas (@ Fez, hay un valle donde solo venden esto) 3. Lamparas, linternas 4. Alfombras 5. Textiles (pueden ser caros, hechos a mano delicadamente por mujeres, recuerden pedir rebaja) 6. Olivas y dátiles 7. Especies! #tickettoanywhere ✈️ #sahara #morocco #desert #saharadesert #travel #marrakech #merzouga #africa #ergchebbi #marruecos #photography #moroccotravel #love #picoftheday #northafrica #travelgram #maghreb #merzougadesert #maroc #sunset #traveling #wanderlust #instatravel #travelphotography #moroccolives #spices #souks #shopping #arganoil (en Morocco) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4hoSMcBnym/?igshid=1eqkr8y6me03d

[rimadadenji]

Rima Dadenji, figs, rose water, honey, and dhikr, Chefchaouen, Morocco, 2017

[drjacquescoulardeau]

ARNAUD DESPLECHIN – ROUBAIX UNE LUMIÈRE - 2019  

 Petit film par le sujet, peut-être sauvé du naufrage par le réalisme ethnique, cependant un tantinet excessif, surtout sur la misère justement synonymes d’ethnicité, mais aussi de femmes isolées, avec un soupçon lourd d’alcoolisme, d’absence de travail, et pourtant plusieurs caractères ethniques sont sauvés des accusations d’autres pas ethniques du tout parce qu’ils travaillaient quand on les accusait de commettre un crime. Mais dire que Roubaix croule dans la misère est faux car Roubaix a une économie de marché noir à faire frémir. Il est vrai que comme cela est bien connu, justement des flics, les plus gros trafiquants dans ce domaine ont dû se déplacer vers quelques banlieues plus lointaines, mais pas Tourcoing car Roubaix est Algérien kabyle et Tourcoing est Algérien arabe. Mais Lille, Wazemmes par exemple, ont quelques moyens dans ce domaine.

 La vision de la ville est absurdement squelettique à tous les sens. On ne voit rien de la ville. On voit une station de métro déplorable alors que la ligne 2 est quasi neuve. On nous montre une courée en état de délabrement sans pareil, mais où ont-ils trouvé cette ruine ? C’est au mieux un squat. Il y a 25 ans les courées étaient en voie de disparition et il n’en restait guère qu’à l’Épeule. Mais de Roubaix même vous ne verrez rien, une vague image en fond d’écran avec la mairie toute en lumière artificielle et c’est tout. Le nouveau commissariat, certes non, les grandes avenues absolument pas. Même le Parc Barbieux n’est peut-être même pas le Parc Barbieux, le Beau Jardin. Et ne parlons pas de la langue. L’accent du Nord, le picard de Roubaix ont disparu. Une ou deux expressions et c’est tout. L’accent lui-même effacé au profit d’un accent français sous-standard homogénéisé et un accent magrébin digne de Belleville ou du 93. Lamentable.

La délinquance de Roubaix c’est le marché noir, le trafic de drogue, mais en plaque tournante, la prostitution y compris de jeunes adolescents, plus que de jeunes adolescentes. Le textile est parti. Il a commencé à brûler à la mi-années 70 quand j’arrivais à Roubaix, et quand elles ne brûlaient pas, les usines, elles étaient fermées de toute façon. Où est la lainière ? La Redoute ne fait pas ou plus dans le textile. Et pourtant la ville est devenue une annexe des universités de Lille avec plusieurs départements installés en dur dans des bâtiments ou usines historiques, sans compter les Archives du Monde du Travail. Ne parlons pas des écoles supérieures d’Arts Appliqués et des BTS de haut niveau, audiovisuel ou informatique, sans oublier le Fresnoy, centre de formation audio-visuel et cinéma qui recrute à niveau licence au niveau européen.

 Les une ou deux familles magrébines montrées dans le film ne correspondent pas à ce que ces familles sont, et je ne pense pas que les choses aient changé à ce point depuis vingt ans. Roubaix a simplement souffert d’avoir été gouverné de 1880 à 1983 par des socialistes, communistes et autres partis de gauche extrémistes dans le discours classe contre classe avec des vedettes dans le domaine comme Jules Guesde (il a sa statue et sa place quelque part, et pour faire plus récent, Emile Duhamel, le dernier adjoint au maire communiste de 1977 à 1983. Et ce discours a été tellement efficace avec grèves et autres perturbations de toute production que le patronat a préféré importer de la population étrangère de façon régulière depuis le 19ème siècle jusqu’à « toujours » des Flandres belges, les « pots-au-burre », comme on les appelait en ce temps là :

 J’n’aime pas les pots-au-burre

Tout l’monte comprindra cha

Ch’est la peste et j’vous l’jure

A Roubaix y n’a qu’cha

 puis Polonais (la seule église catholique polonaise de France est à Roubaix, puis magrébins avec sélection « naturelle » au profit des Kabyles et Berbères, plutôt que de continuer à employer des ouvriers à niveau CAP au plus, et encore parfois maigre, mais qui exigeaient d’être payés comme des techniciens au moins moyens. L’augmentation du smic en particulier a tué la ville en faisant fuir les travailleurs français de la ZUP nord-est pour les villes de banlieue, puis les quartiers standing moyen du centre-ville de l’Avenue des Nations Unies, une folie de planification urbaine de l’ère socialiste séculaire. Et les meilleurs, s’entend les enfants, ont quitté Roubaix aussi vite qu’ils le pouvaient pour leur éducation supérieure et pour leur carrière professionnelle.

Si vous n’êtes pas dans le marché noir de pièces automobiles ou de drogue, vous n’avez rien pour vous. Si vous êtes sans qualification, mère célibataire, un peu handicapé, beaucoup penché vers la bouteille de bière, ou plus fort, vois devenez un squatter dans des conditions infernales et vous n’avez alors pas d’espoir et donc pas d’avenir. Et personne ne s’occupera de vous, sauf la police bien sûr. Si le commissaire concerné dans le film est lui-même arrivé à Roubaix du Maghreb quand il avait sept ans et qu’il a su monter un peu dans la société, au point d’être attiré par la police qui a une Ecole Nationale de Police justement à Roubaix depuis le début des années 1990, vous avez de la chance car il ne va pas vouloir vous massacrer. Mais il vous tirera les vers du nez, même si on devrait dire les verres du nez, vu que vous buvez de la bière au petit déjeuner et du Wambrechies pour réussir à sortir at aller chercher votre pain quotidien, si vos pensions diverses at aides alimentaires ne sont pas taries pour un jour ou deux. Mais comme le film est à Noël les restaurants du coeur marchent à fond. Coluche est bien la coqueluche de ces « pauvres ».

 C’est le discours misérabiliste réformiste en vogue dans les milieux petite classe moyenne, moyennement éduquée et totalement coupée de la réalité réelle. Il fait si bon de rester dans le cocon de la réalité corrigée des variations saisonnières. On aurait pu faire un autre film sur Roubaix, et définitivement sur le sujet de l’aliénation sociale. On a fait là un truc qui sera mort dans à peine douze mois.

 Dr. Jacques COULARDEAU

[livingin0bedience-blog]

Introducing my trail of exploration

·         The lives of young modern Algerian women is that of one which is heavily under researched within cultural and artistic discourses. Despite this, it holds a very rich yet juxtaposed account of 21st century living, in a country that still functions on taboo-based fears, that even the neighboring Maghreb have relinquished. This sphere illuminates the challenges Algerian women face in public spaces, and their use of textiles as an outlet to regain control of their femininity in the private sphere I.e. weddings.

            This question of inquiry also highlights the issue of a lack of collective education towards the treatment of women and the rights they pertain, particularly focusing on the sudden increase within northern Arab countries. I will use contemporary artist such as Baya, Hasssan Hajjajj and Mouna Karray to explore my inquiry, all of whom depict the treatment and representation of Arab women’s identities within either modern or historical contexts. Despite their different techniques and messages, I’ve chosen to use these artists as they challenge the controversial role of what it means to be an Arab women in today's society. They use a range of methods such as photography, layering and painting abstract hybrid compositions.

[architectnews]

Bamboo-framed majlis installed at Venice Architecture Biennale as model of nomadic architecture

Architects Simón Vélez and Stefana Simic have worked with craftspeople from Colombia, Morocco and Italy to create The Majlis, which recreates a traditional Islamic gathering space from bamboo and handwoven textiles.

The structure is installed in the gardens of the Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice for the 2021 edition of the Venice Architecture Biennale.

It aims to bring wider attention to the global importance of majlis, which feature on UNESCO's list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The Majlis structure is made from bamboo and hand-woven textiles

In pre-Islamic Arabia, a majlis was a place where people would come together to exchange ideas. They are common among nomadic communities, but could also be a part of the home or a more formal gathering space.

"Although the majlis is a reality for many nomadic people across the world, from the Maghreb to Eastern Asia, the name and the meaning of the majlis is unfamiliar to many," said exhibition curator Thierry Morel, "so I thought it was very important to explain the role of the majlis and what happens there."

A majlis is a traditional type of gathering space, typical in nomadic communities

Although a majlis can take many forms, this example features a bamboo structure designed and built in Bogotá, Colombia, and textiles handwoven in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco.

Bamboo experts Vélez and Simic, who together lead the studio Gigagrass, used their expertise to design a structure with a domed shaped and projecting roof canopy.

It showcases bamboo's unique combination of strength, lightness and sustainability, which led Vélez to coin the term "vegetable steel" to describe the material.

Designed by Simón Vélez and Stefana Simic, the structure was built in Bogotá

According to Simic, the craft involved in working with bamboo is one of its most unique characteristics.

It may also explain why bamboo is not more commonly used in construction, despite its numerous advantages.

"Bamboo has an obvious advantage in terms of sustainability but for me, the most motivational aspect of bamboo is the relation with the craftsmen," said Simic.

"There's no way to really standardise bamboo, you can reach a certain point but you can't eliminate the craftsmen from any part of the bamboo architecture production."

The designers worked with Venetian craftspeople on the final assembly

As the architects weren't able to travel to Venice to install the structure, they collaborated with craftspeople from Venice to assemble the components on-site.

The handwoven textiles that wrap the building's central dome were created by the Ain Leuh Women's Cooperative in Morocco, who have built a community around this craft.

The cut bamboo pieces make this structure exceptionally strong

The Majlis was initiated by Caravane Earth, a newly established foundation that aims to promote traditional idea and techniques, as a way to find answers to some of today's problems.

The installation is accompanied by an exhibition showcasing objects and craftsmanship that tell the stories of majlis from around the world.

"The main purpose of The Majlis is to illustrate the importance of intercultural dialogue and mutual education, to demonstrate the power of traditional knowledge and techniques in dealing with the majority of planetary issues of the present," said Caravane Earth managing director Fahad Al-Attiya.

Todd Longstaffe-Gowan designed a productive garden around the majlis

As well as installing the pavilion, Caravne Earth also commissioned landscape architect Todd Longstaffe-Gowan to redesign the gardens where it is set.

Longstaffe-Gowan's design sees the landscape transformed into a productive garden, with vegetables, fruit trees and herbs. Based on how a Venetian garden might have looked in the Middle Ages, it includes an enclosure for chickens, furrow planting and a type of tree used in apothecary.

The garden will remain as a legacy of the project

While the majlis will travel to other destinations after the biennale is over, including Qatar during the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the garden will remain in place for the future.

In this way, the exhibition can have a permanent legacy for the Benedictine community of San Giorgio Maggiore, who are based here.

The Majlis is on show at Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore as part of the Venice Architecture Biennale, which takes place from 22 May to 21 November 2021. Dezeen Events Guide for all the latest information you need to know to attend the event, as well as a list of other architecture and design events taking place around the world.

The post Bamboo-framed majlis installed at Venice Architecture Biennale as model of nomadic architecture appeared first on Dezeen.

[kroabot]

Transcript of the messages that Jennifer received on Friday and Saturday.  Now she has returned to ghosting.  But two blue checkmarks indicate the following transcript has all been received and read by Jennifer.  This message is confirmed to be received into her phone.  (Translated to English from original Spanish) for full English and Spanish transcript, :

https://kroabot.tumblr.com/post/620410222933114880/64-126-am-kurt-hello-i-had-coronavirus-in

[6/4, 1:26 AM] kurt: Hello, I had coronavirus in April, that's why I behaved so strangely.  I am recovering now.

 [6/4, 1:59 AM] kurt: You only speak to me, in this whatsapp, for drug traffickers and extortionists.

 [6/4, 2:04 AM] kurt: And human traffickers.  And Arab terrorists.  This whatsapp is not my type of social group.

 [6/4, 2:06 AM] kurt: You loved my beard and my eyes, the first day you met me.  So someone made you a racist fanatic.  And you hated me, and you thought I was ugly after that.  And you said, I was crazy.  Because I believed everything you said.

 [6/4, 2:09 AM] kurt: This is like a hate crime.  Show the gringo that he is crazy and worthless.  After going to Bolivia with all the sweaters.  With a man you really love.  How am I supposed to react?  Now your lover wants to send you to me again?  Or those three Venezuelans, who came to rob me at midnight, at the previous hotel in April?

 [6/4, 7:38 PM] kurt: Are you French from North Africa?  I started meeting French people from North Africa in Paris, after you left.  On twitter.  I have to use translate to communicate in French.

 [6/4, 7:41 PM] kurt: After I accepted that you were gone.  I wanted to meet more people, like you.  And Allah guided me to the French Africans.  And I thought "Jennifer said her father was French"

 [6/4, 7:44 PM] kurt: I had some interactions with French from North Africa.  Muslim and Christian, living in France.  These Latinas are racist with me.  I am preparing to leave, but it is a slow preparation.

 [6/4, 7:48 PM] kurt: I like your African French side, Jennifer.  I don't like that you agree with Latinos.  That white man is not for family, marriage, or love.  But only by acquiring money and property, and then moving on.  I don't like racist Latinos, they steal from me and say I'm mentally ill to apologize.  But I could find love in the French community in Africa haha

 [6/4, 7:51 PM] kurt: "There's no one like Jennifer," I said to myself.  Then Allah directed me to the French community in North Africa.  It is called the Maghreb, historically?  Let's act like we're polite, not Latino bandits.  You are an educated African French.

 [6/4, 8:30 PM] kurt: My main regret, after you left.  I did not invite you and Valeria to pray the salat prayer with me.  By the saying "families that pray together stay together"

 [6/4, 8:31 PM] kurt: I also envisioned holding a "skills assessment workshop" with you to determine how your education could help expand the business internationally.

 [6/4, 8:37 PM] kurt: A group of people wants you to remain vulnerable and easy to control.  Always ready to cheat and extort money for them.  Does it make you feel important?  How is stability established so that Valeria can have an education?

 [6/4, 8:43 PM] kurt: I'm calmer now.  I already had coronaviruses in March and April, and I recovered.  He was not sleeping because he knew that he was vulnerable to death from coronavirus.  I did not let you take the kettle, because that was for eucalyptus and honey tea.  The virus attacked my brain, heart, lungs, arteries, and left an injury.  That's the reason, he was acting crazy, and he didn't sleep.  I knew I was vulnerable, dying from the virus.

 [6/4, 8:48 PM] kurt: French makeup artists.  A special education college student.  Political Sciences.  French Africans are intelligent professional girls.

 [6/4, 8:49 PM] kurt: My main regret, after you left.  I did not invite you and Valeria to pray the salat prayer with me.  By the saying "families that pray together stay together"

 [6/4, 8:52 PM] kurt: French Africans live in Quebec, Canada.  And in France and Senegal.  Different countries in North Africa.  I can be good friends with African girls.  But you don't behave like an African.  You were a Latina, who thinks that white men are mentally ill, trash.  Latinos steal from me and then say, "You are mentally ill."  And all Latinos agree.  They have the hearts of demons and are more evil than animals.

 [6/4, 8:54 PM] kurt: I had African friends before.  They didn't act like racist Latinos, they were respectful.  One blocked me because he wanted me to fly to Zambia and marry her in a week.  Then she blocked me, because I couldn't get on a plane right away.

 [6/4, 8:55 PM] Jennifer: You love me

 [6/4, 8:57 PM] kurt: I didn't remember, I have a numb forehead.  From praying salat for 8 years.  And you looked at it in disgust.  So I should look for a Muslim, a French African woman.  Who will not ridicule me for my beard and my mark of prostration?  haha

 [6/4, 8:59 PM] kurt: I think I'm in love with you.  He could barely cope with life, in March and April.  But the virus attacked my brain for 4 weeks.  I'm happy you weren't there.  I had hallucinations

 [6/4, 9:01 PM] kurt: I knew your friends, they made you hate me.  You no longer complimented my eyes.  Or you wanted me to shave.  You were not the same, the day I met you.  I can't dedicate myself to someone who hates me.  Because of my religion and race.

 [6/4, 9:03 PM] kurt: I fell in love and didn't worry if they were cheating on me or not.  It is better to live and love, even if it results in disaster.

 [6/4, 9:05 PM] kurt: Should I redirect my attention to someone who also cares about me?  You just loved my eyes and my beard, for a day or two.  You lost interest in me every time you went back to your friends.  They hate the white man, and they hate seeing a black woman, with a white man.  When you're supposed to get property from tourists, for your racist gang.

 [6/4, 9:08 PM] kurt: I fell in love with you so much that I no longer remembered any woman, that left me in the past.  I felt the best I have ever felt with you.  And I felt close to dying, when you left.  That is not good for my health.  The virus hurt my heart, I don't need any more heart pain, from someone, thinking I'm a joke of mental illness.  That is only to excuse the abandonment and the lie.

 [6/4, 9:09 PM] Jennifer: I love you baby

 [6/4, 9:09 PM] kurt: I was a joke to you and your racist gang of friends.  But I learned a lot from you and I have new interests and objectives since I met you.

 [6/4, 9:12 PM] kurt: We build a vision of a future together.  I was so excited to start building a future.  I didn't know you were distracting me to get the sweaters, that I didn't care.

 [6/4, 9:12 PM] kurt: Chompas is rubbish haha

 [6/4, 9:13 PM] kurt: When I go to Paris and the Middle East, God willing, there will be better fabrics and textiles to work with.

 [6/4, 9:14 PM] kurt: I know it's because I'm 20 years older than you.  Socially and economically, it seems that I have no potential.  Especially in the eyes of racist Latinos, who hate and envy the white man.

 [6/4, 9:17 PM] kurt: They envy you and hate you too, because you have a better education and potential.  But racist Latinos don't need an educated black woman.  They want a petty extortionist, to bring the gang's property, from the tourists.  I'm not even a tourist, I'm a separated father, and my daughter was kidnapped 7 years ago.  And I have a broken spirit, but I am educated and have professional skills.

 [6/4, 9:17 PM] kurt: I love you, :(

 [6/4, 9:19 PM] kurt: It reminded me of my life, before my daughter was kidnapped.  By Peruvian Mormons.  Now I see, Pentacostals and Mormons are gangs of human trafficking and spiritual abuse.  But they are two different types of spiritual abuse.  I enjoyed a bit of the pentacostal spiritual abuse.  haha

 [6/4, 9:23 PM] kurt: I don't know if you did that.  Or a pentacostal pastor, but I got very disoriented from the spiritual attack.  Maybe your congregation collectively attacked me, psychic spiritual attack.  It was different from Mormon spiritual abuse.  Pentacostal spiritual abuse is like an electric shock to my brain.  Mormons do it differently, they project toxic energy into your psyche.  I appreciated that pentacostal spiritual abuse does not involve as much toxicity in the attack.  He was less mentally ill and had a clearer mind, after Pentacostal Remote Psychic Shock Therapy.

 [6/4, 9:25 PM] kurt: I have a lot of experience with spiritual abuse.  I left Mormon and converted to Islam.  I know the predatory nature of pentacostals and mormons.  You said you were Catholic when I met you.  But when you said Pentacostal later, I started to worry.

 [6/4, 9:27 PM] kurt: First my brain received a spiritual attack.  Then, in March and April, the virus attacked my brain.  But my mental illness improved.  My mind is clearer.  Unfortunately, the coronavirus damaged the tissue of my heart.  And occasionally I have pain in my heart.

 [6/4, 9:30 PM] kurt: very pretty and cute Jennifer drinks

 [6/4, 9:30 PM] kurt: Pentacostal spiritual abuse was like electro-shock therapy.  For my mental illness PTSD.  Then the virus attack corrected my epilepsy.  Instead of making it worse.  That is Allah at work, where difficulties become a blessing.

 [6/4, 9:31 PM] kurt: You made me feel loved, for enough days.  I remember what to fight for.  So even if you don't love me, I know I should find someone who loves me.  Because life felt so much better when you were there for such a short time.

 [6/4, 9:37 PM] kurt: Maybe the pentacostals are like Mormons.  My own daughter helped pay for me to be killed.  So you can have the life insurance money.  I love my daughter, but I saw the life insurance documents.  She is disappointed that he has not died from the coronavirus.  I texted Star, I should introduce you to Jennifer.  They can help each other, so they can kill me.  And get that life insurance money.  This is spiritual abuse, 14-year-old girls and single mothers with a college education shouldn't hate men.  That is cultural, and it is bad religion.

 [6/4, 9:38 PM] kurt: When people try to hurt me.  I introduce them to each other.  "Here is another person who can help you", I am a little depressed and suicidal by this treatment.  And also bored of cheap Arab and Latin hitmen.

 [6/4, 9:44 PM] kurt: I want to go to bolivia I don't like it here I want to go to Europe and the Middle East.  Peru is useless.  Too racist and ignorant, land of bandits.

 [6/4, 9:46 PM] kurt: I don't know if this means, do you like what I say?  Or if you're encouraging me, so those three Venezuelans can go back to the new hotel and rob me.  Venezuelans were not the Venezuelans I know.  Maybe they had weapons in their backpack.

 [6/4, 9:58 PM] kurt: I will go to Bolivia without your help.  You already abandoned me and left me to recover financially alone.  I will go to Bolivia myself.  I don't need help from the Venezuelan gang of rescue kidnappers.  I already saw them, trying to enter the hotel.  So I changed hotels.

 [6/4, 10:00 PM] kurt: very pretty and cute Jennifer baby.  It makes me feel horrible, that I'm too old or that I'm not the right race or religion for you.

 [6/4, 10:02 PM] kurt: Families who pray together stay together.

 Families who pray together stay together.

 [6/5, 2:17 AM] kurt: I will immerse myself, in Paris, France, in French African culture.  I want a French African wife now.  You gave me a wonderful preview.  What it will be like to marry an African French woman.  It is like walking in the clouds in love.

 [6/5, 2:21 AM] kurt: Paris France, on twitter.  The North African Twitter community is very large.

 [6/5, 2:23 AM] kurt: Or I am going straight to Medina, in Saudi Arabia, where I will be safe.  One of the two original cities for Muslims.

 [6/5, 2:58 AM] kurt: I love you very much.  I don't think I can replace you.  I speak to French African girls, to deal with losing you.  But it is not filling the void, of your absence.

 [6/5, 3:00 AM] kurt: It just helps me remember you.  Like when I lived in Huánuco, because the girls remind me of my daughter.  And I couldn't bear the loss without some form of therapy.

 [6/5, 3:03 AM] kurt: how are you Jennifer?

 [6/5, 3:05 AM] kurt: My daughter's people are in Huánuco.  And your people are in Paris and in Northwest Africa?

 [6/5, 3:14 AM] kurt: Maybe your ancestors are from the same place.  Maghreb.  Northwest Africa.  I never studied French Africans until I met you.

 [6/5, 3:19 AM] kurt: Let's start a humanitarian organization, for French African and Quechua women.  And Venezuelan immigrants and refugee rights.  Do you like studying law?

 [6/5, 3:46 AM] kurt: If we can introduce ourselves, as business professionals.  We can do our own professional business services.

 [6/5, 9:40 AM] kurt: Paris, France, and Medina, Saudi Arabia.  It is my travel itinerary.  That is my main point, Jennifer.

 [6/6, 12:39 AM] kurt: Families who pray together stay together.

 Families who pray together stay together.

 [6/6, 12:40 AM] kurt: I love you Jennifer I miss you.  Hope to see you again soon.

 [6/6, 3:38 AM] kurt: France #blacklivesmatter 💋🥰

 [6/6, 3:39 AM] kurt: protests in France for BLM black lives matter

 (Black lives matter.)

 [6/6, 6:34 AM] kurt: Paris France on twitter.  French, North African, in Paris, France.

 [6/6, 5:58 PM] kurt: Now I'm researching fashion, like the first day I met you, Jennifer.  Get lost in fabrics, dyes, textiles, accessories and business travel plans.

 [6/6, 6:02 PM] kurt: This is how I got your attention, Jennifer.  I was concerned with color schemes, fabrics, and fashion accessories.  And you were in my research area hehe

 [6/6, 6:06 PM] kurt: I was looking for assistance to the sales team.  An Indonesian Facebook page showed a woman, with space full of clothes.  Hire a sales team to help distribute and sell the clothing.  As individual private companies.

 [6/6, 6:08 PM] kurt: Warehouse!

 [6/6, 6:10 PM] kurt: In February, I told Daniel, to this storekeeper for polo shirts and jeans.  I want to make a warehouse, with sweaters.  And leather shoes.

 [6/6, 6:11 PM] kurt: More blouses and dresses, and jackets.

 [6/6, 6:52 PM] kurt: I love you baby,

 [6/6, 6:53 PM] kurt: 💋👚👚👖