Farid Belkahia

Farid Belkahia – Untitled, 1972

Born in Marrakech in 1934, Farid Belkahia studied at the École des beaux-arts in Paris, a period during which he discovered Paul Klee and the Bauhaus. He obtained a scholarship to study in Prague (1959–1962), where he trained in scenography and met artists such as Elsa Triolet, Pablo Neruda, Paul Éluard, and others.

Upon his return to Morocco in 1962, he took over the directorship of the École des beaux-arts in Casablanca, where, alongside Mohamed Melehi and Mohamed Chabâa, he initiated a major pedagogical reform. Together, they championed an artistic modernity anchored in Moroccan popular arts, craftsmanship, and Amazigh and African visual traditions, while remaining open to international avant-gardes. This dynamic would give birth to what became known as the Casablanca School.

Following an initial figurative period, Farid Belkahia gradually abandoned painting to explore organic materials such as copper, raw hide, natural dyes, and henna. Through an experimental practice centered on matter, gesture, and artisanal know-how, he contributed to redefining the relationship between modernity, memory, and visual culture in Morocco.