Houda Terjuman | Artist

Houda Terjuman – The circus of life, 2024

Houda Terjuman, born in Tangiers, Morocco, to a Syrian father and Swiss mother, uses her floating sculptures and paintings to tell the story of migration, exile, attachment to roots and the search for identity. Her surrealistic works take us on a long journey through the Middle East, Europe and Africa.

"The history of my practice is overwhelmingly informed by my status as hybrid migrant, a condition associated to second generation migrants. My father is Syrian, my mother Swiss and I was born in Morocco. I am therefore African. The transient nature of my evolution as a person and as an artist opened up fascinating ways of playing with representation in art. My father as a first-generation migrant used to tell us that we had no safety net and the integration in another country was necessary. However, I chose to refuse the concept and the practice of assimilation and instead, I cherished the status of hybridity which to me, offers a rich mix of backgrounds, voices, and belongings.

My sculptures and paintings are little familiar objects that weave stories. These small objects act as bearers of hope and bridges making the link between cultures. An empty chair symbolises what we left behind and keeps us connected to our roots. A lonely boat is a bearer of hope. A floating bridge invites us to build connections and empathy towards the unknown."