Back to Issue Fifty-Nine

THE DANCE OF THE STEED

by ABDERRAHIM TRIFIS

 

 

 

THE MELODY OF THE GAZELLE

by ABDERRAHIM TRIFIS

 

 

 

QAYS AND LAYLA

by ABDERRAHIM TRIFIS

 

 

 

Behind the Work

“In The Dance of the Steed, birds, animals, and humans transform into a horse, all merging into a celebratory dance vibrant with life. In The Melody of the Gazelle, a woman merges with nature in a surreal visual metamorphosis, where the gazelle transforms into a stringed instrument she plays. In Qays and Layla, I return to ancient Arabian roots and nomadic life, depicting Layla with her jar and Qays courting her. My style relies on bold lines and intensive, vibrant dotting, transforming the goat skin I paint on into a woven visual narrative that reflects the joy of existence and deep cultural memory.”

 

 

Abderrahim Trifis is a self-taught Moroccan artist, born in 1974 in Sidi El Mokhtar. Drawing deeply from his nomadic Saharan roots through the Ouled Abu Sebaa tribe, his imagination was discovered in 2005 by Danish art critic Frederik Damgaard. Trifis is renowned for his intricate paintings on goat skins, created uniquely using handcrafted reed pens that he shapes himself. This traditional practice powers his precise stippling and relief techniques. His vibrant, dreamlike world blends popular memory and ancient symbols, beautifully weaving together human and animal forms to transform ancestral fables into captivating visual stories.

 

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