We asked our staff in Jordan, Tunisia, and Morocco to share with us the most important artists of their countries and regions.

Jordan

Jordan is the home of a lot of art movements and history. In fact, Jordan was the home of figurines found in Ain Ghazal that have been dated to the Neolithic Period, followed by the beautiful Islamic art and architecture in the later centuries. When it comes to the early 20th century and the establishment of Jordan, a contemporary Jordanian art movement arose, with the goal of finding a unique Jordanian identity that mixed traditional and contemporary art elements. Here are a few artists that helped conceive this Jordanian identity.

Muhanna Al-Dura

Al-Dura became the first Jordanian to ever receive a formal arts education and the establisher of the Jordanian Arts Movement. Muhanna Al Durra introduced cubism and abstract art into the Jordanian visual arts community. He was a professor at the University of Jordan's Faculty of Fine Art and Design and the President of the Jordan Association of Fine Arts. Muhanna was introduced to Rembrandt and the Dutch school by Dutch painter William Hallowin, who inspired his passion with the power of light.

Princess Wijdan Ali

A student of Muhanna Durra, Princess Wijdan Ali is primarily recognized for her abstract paintings and work as an art historian, as well as her efforts to revitalize Islamic art traditions. She founded the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts and the Royal Society of Fine Arts. She is also the founder and dean of the University of Jordan's newly founded Faculty of Arts and Design. She is also an arts patron who has curated several Islamic art exhibitions. She contributes to the contemporary school of Arabic calligraphic painting by developing the traditions of Arabic calligraphy in a new format. She has been dubbed a pioneer of the Hurufiyyah Art Movement for her use of Arabic calligraphy as a graphic form.

Mahmoud Taha

He has been regarded as "the Arab world's leading ceramicist." Mahmoud Taha was one of the first contemporary painters to use calligraphy as a graphic element in his work, and as a result, he helped to establish the Hurufiyah Art Movement, which mixes classic art forms in novel ways. The following has been said about his work: “In Taha's work, the viewer may trace the natural hues of his ancient heritage."

Some Jordanian photography and art in a gallery in Amman. Photo credit: Amideast staff, 2021.

Tunisia

Emel Methlouthi

Singer, author, composer, and performer, Methlouthi is the whole Tunisian package for a foundational artist. Her song “Kelmti Horra” (“My word is free”) was considered the anthem of the Tunisian revolution back in 2011. She sang it first during a protest to impeach the former president of Tunisia, and again in 2015 at the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony in Oslo. To this day, Methlouthi is still touring the world and singing about what it was like to live in a dictatorship and how to overcome an oppressive regime using art. She is an emblem of freedom of speech for Tunisians.

El Seed

If you were ever passing by a wall and it was embroidered with beautiful Arabic calligraphy, it might probably be El Seed’s art. With a distinctive style spreading messages of peace and unity, El Seed’s artwork aims to build understanding through the use of contemporary art and incorporating elements of graffiti with the beauty of Arabic calligraphy. His unique style and work have been shown all over the world, from exhibitions and famous places such as the façade of the of L’Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, to the slums of Cape Town in South Africa, North and South Korea, Rio de Janeiro, and the Cairo’s garbage collector neighborhood.

Street art in Djerba using Amazigh writing. Photo credit: Hajjem, 2021.

Rochdi Belgasmi

He is one of Tunisia’s most renowned dancers; with every appearance on a show and a well-calligraphed performance, Belgasmi presents a beautiful blend between the traditional dance and contemporary style. He is the Tunisian identity when it comes to the world of dance. Although his style is sometimes considered controversial, Belgasmi wears male and female garments to his performances, taking the audience on a trip in history and igniting their passion for the art of popular Tunisian dancing.

Mouna Karray

Mouna Karray is a self-taught Tunisian photographer and video artist. Her work, in its various forms, poses the universal question of identities, confinement, and mental boundaries. Her art is also focused on public issues and questions both the active and the static socio-political movements. Karray’s work is exhibited in the collections of Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa, South Africa, the Sindika Dokolo Foundation, Luanda, Angola, and the Ministry of Tunisian Culture.

Zoubeir Turki

Born and raised in the alleys of the old Medina in Tunis in 1924, Zubeir Turki grew up to become one of the most famous painters and sculptures Tunisia has known. The works of Turki were inspired only by the unique and authentic daily life of Tunisia, a life rich in small details which constituted the very essence of his inspiration. Turki’s drawings put the audience in front of multiple characters of generals, beggars, tourists, and ancestors, represented in a way that makes them look like they are about to come alive.

Paintings in Rabat’s Kasbah of the Udayas. Photo credit: Amideast staff, 2021.

Morocco

Hasan El Fed

Hasan is the most famous Moroccan comedian in the past 20 years. He is well-known as Kabour because of his most recent comedy show that has been broadcasted on the Moroccan TV station for the past 7 years. Hasan gave the chance to new actors to have a role in his shows and introduced them, who later became famous, to the Moroccan audience.

Here’s his Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/HassanElFad

Nass El Ghiwane

Nass El Ghiwane is a music band formed in the late 1960s in Casablanca. Their music was unique at that time because it combined multiple style from the Moroccan folklore and culture, like Sufism lyrics, Gnaoua and Melhoune music and instruments and poetry. Their songs mainly focused of issues from the Moroccan life and treated the concerns of the Moroccan people whether it is social, political, economic or religious.

Nass El Ghiwane and the phenomenon the created was the cause of the birth of many other Moroccan music bands that were inspired by them, like Jil Jilala, Lemchaheb, Essiham…etc.

4 out of 5 of the founders passed away, but Moroccans still play their iconic songs, and some artists reproduced them in different styles.

This is their Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvViUqeq3LbbYwcEMPi_43w

Hasan Hajjaj

Hassan Hajjaj is a contemporary Moroccan artist known for his photography, printed fabrics, and films. Hassan collaborated with many local, regional, and international artists and hosted several celebrities in his studio in Marrakesh. A lot of his work was published in well-known magazines like Vogue and The New Yorker.

Here’s his Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/hassanhajjaj_larache/

Mahi Binebine

Mahi is an author, painter, and sculptor. His novel “Horses of God” was turned into a movie and won multiple international prizes for it. Mahi is an active member in the artistic society of Morocco and always tackles political and social concerns and translate them into art either in his novels or paintings. His exhibitions are always interesting to check out.

This is his webpage: https://www.mahibinebine.com/

Want to learn more about MENA artists? Check out the Dalloul Art Foundation (DAF)

Thanks to Aya Albsoul, Education Abroad Intern in Jordan, Donia Hajjem, Education Abroad Project Coordinator in Tunisia, and Colleen Daley, Education Abroad Program Manager in Morocco for their contributions.