Muhammad Melehi

BORN ASILAH, MOROCCO, 1936
Melehi graduated from the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Tetuan, Morocco, in 1955. He continued his studies in fine arts in Seville and Madrid Spain, then sculpture in Rome. From 1964-96 he was teacher of painting, sculpture and photography at the Ecole des beaux- Arts in Casablanca. He has had numerous group and solo exhibitions around the world. In 1978 along with Mohamed Bannissa, he founded a cultural association and international arts festival in his birthplace, Asilah, that has revitalized the region. Melehi has held prominent positions in the arts in Morocco, including Director of Arts for the Ministry of Culture, 1984-92, and Cultural consultant for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperations, 1990-91.

Farid Belkahia (1934)

(b Marrakesh, 15 Nov 1934). Moroccan painter. He began painting at the age of 15, He was then sent on a scholarship to study theatrical design in Czechoslovakia. Upon his return to Morocco in 1962, he was appointed director of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Casablanca (1962–74), where he introduced classes in the principles of Arabic calligraphy, which he believed could be utilized in modern painting. In 1964 Belkahia and the artists MOHAMMED MELEHI and Mohamed Chebaa (b 1935) formed what became known as the ‘Casablanca Group’. They replaced models of Greek statues and still-life paintings at the Ecole with reproductions of Moroccan handicrafts, and taught their students to draw geometric forms and design jewellery and carpets. Their aim was to close the gap between craft and art, and break away from imported academic teachings and the naïve painting tradition of the past. In his own work, Belkahia began to use such materials as beaten brass, leather, henna, saffron and natural dyes. He developed a distinct style, producing paintings on hand-stretched leather that incorporated popular signs and motifs, numbers, Arabic calligraphy and characters taken from Berber script. In his later work he turned to erotic themes while using this style and medium (e.g. untitled, henna on wood and leather, 1981; Amman, N.G. F.A.).