Dar Al-Ma'mûn, Residency Programme for Artists and Translators
March Meeting 2011
Dar Al-Ma'mûn, Residency Programme for Artists and Translators
Omar Berrada, Redha Moali, Julien Amicel & Carleen Hamon
March Meeting 2011
Dar Al-Ma'mûn, Residency Programme for Artists and Translators
Omar Berrada, Redha Moali, Julien Amicel & Carleen Hamon
Overview
Dar Al-Ma’mûn is an international residency for artists and translators located 13 km from Marrakech in the village of Tassoultante (Ourika Valley). Its library, arts centre, and educational and literacy programme aim to offer a more long-term format than the series of festivals that punctuate the cultural scene of Morocco. Dar Al-Ma'mûn used the March Meeting platform to showcase their foundation, share ideas and express their desire to form partnerships and cross-residencies in the region.
Presentation Proposal
The project asserts itself as a cultural platform which aims to provide support to emerging artists with the help of an international gateway. It also aims to promote Moroccan and African cultural identity beyond borders by working with intercultural exchanges so as to contribute to local economic development. The 4,000 square-metre Dar Al-Ma’mûn also includes a translation research centre of ancient texts (Arabic-English-French) and a library, open to the public, that contains over 15,000 books. Throughout the year Dar Al-Ma’mûn will offer lectures on social themes and cultural events to increase the public’s awareness of creation in the fields of theatre, fine art and music in the hope of breaking down current barriers. This project will open its doors next September.
Omar Berrada
Omar Berrada is Director of the Dar al-Ma’mûn Library and Literary Research Centre, as well as a translator, writer and critic. Between 2004 and 2007 he produced and hosted programmes for France Culture, including The night of poetry and Light in August. He was programmer for Spoken Journals of the Centre Pompidou (2006-2009) and Commissioner of the International Book Fair of Tangier (2008). He is a member of the Tamaas Office Foundation, which supports intercultural art projects, and President of Double Change, a Franco-American association for poetry and translation.
Carleen Hamon
Carleen Hamon is Co-Director of Dar Al-Ma'mûn. After studying Art History at the University of La Sapienza, Roma, she studied at the Institut Supérieur des Carrières Artistiques, Paris. She worked at Enrico Navarra Gallery, La Maison Rouge (Fondation Antoine de Galbert) and at Emmanuel Perrotin Gallery, before moving to New York where she managed a contemporary art gallery and worked for the Italian designer Gaetano Pesce. She also handled the coordination of the 1st Cutlog Contemporary art fair in Paris and has worked as an art consultant for private collectors.
Redha Moali is the Founder and Chairman of Dar Al-Ma’mûn.