Faculty
What
Multi-year InitiativeWhere
When
Academic YearJan 1, 2017 — Jun 1, 2020
Past Initiative
Crafting the City: Focus Morocco
RISD is partnered with Morocco’s Ministry of Tourism, Air Transport, Handicrafts and Social Economy, Maison de l’Artisan and Holmarcom Group to co-create a multifaceted collaboration and partnership between RISD faculty and students and Moroccan craftspeople, designers and academics.
The 16-month interdisciplinary program aims to create an educational platform for a rich experiential cultural exchange and discourse-driven studies that reinforce a shared commitment to preserving heritages and artisan practices in Morocco and beyond, while exploring the intersections of arts and crafts with technology, innovation and the built environment.
At-A-Glance
Department
Morocco: Clay-in-Context
Providence, RI, USA
2018
Shared Languages Exhibition
Providence, RI, USA
2018
Morocco Initiative
Providence, RI, USA
2018
Morocco Initiative
The pilot program includes a five-week travel course in Morocco for students to study craft in relationship to the built environment in Fés, a full semester on-campus course focused on the intersections of patterns within craft and the built environment, a seminar on craft in the Islamic world, and a one-week residency for members of Morocco’s craft community to be held on RISD’s campus. Each aspect of the program engages the RISD community with the depth and richness of craft in Morocco today while also showcasing the value of craft know-how and the role of craft within the built environment. A core goal of the program is to foster cross-cultural learning and exchange across languages, socio-economic realities and geographies.
Courses
- Morocco: Crafting the City, Wintersession 2018
- Morocco: Clay in Context, Spring 2018
- Crafting the Wall, Wintersession 2019
- Design In Morocco, Spring 2019
Events
- Artisan Residency with Abderrazak Bahij, Asmaa Benachir, and Bouchra Boudoua, Spring 2018
- Exhibition: "Shared Languages: Works in progress from the studios Centre de Formation et Qualification des Métiers de l’Artisanat Al Batha, Fés (CFQMA) and RISD, Providence," Fall 2018
- Artisan Residency with Khalid Lazrak, Ahmed Zahouane, and Azouz Hayani Dahbi, Spring 2019
Press
- Press release: Rhode Island School of Design and the Ministry of Tourism, Air Transport, Handicrafts and Social Economy of Morocco, Maison de l’Artisan and Holmarcom Group Announce Pilot Collaboration and Partnership
- Art & education announcement: RISD and the Ministry of Tourism of Morocco, Maison de l’Artisan and Holmarcom Announce Pilot Collaboration and Partnership
- Art & education announcement: Exhibition and symposium exploring role of craft in the built environment of Morocco
- RISD story: New Partnership Centers on Moroccan Craft
- RISD story: Experiencing Exquisite Craft in Morocco
- RISD blogpost: Echoes of Morocco
Engage With Us
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Morocco: Advanced Studio - Pattern | Performance | Clay
This course will focus on the architectural relevance of ceramic craft in the construction of contemporary building components and products, and will study the use of clay through in depth research and a series of hands on experiments.
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Morocco: Crafting the City
In this studio course RISD students will engage with the reciprocity between craftsmanship and the adaptation of the built environment in the context of artisan economies.
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No upcoming events for this program at this time.