Harem Revisited #47abc 2013

Editor: Here we have Lalla Essaydi’s "Harem Revisited #47abc," a mixed-media piece from 2013. It's quite striking! It feels like a contemporary take on Orientalist painting, but with a complexity I can't quite put my finger on. What do you see in this work? Curator: What immediately grabs me is Essaydi's strategic intervention within the historical genre of Orientalism. The harem, traditionally depicted by European male artists as a space of exotic fantasy and female subjugation, is here revisited through a distinctly female, and more specifically, Moroccan lens. Do you notice how the Arabic calligraphy covers every surface, including the women's bodies? Editor: Yes, I do! At first, I thought it was just decorative, but now that you mention it... What does it signify? Curator: Well, historically, calligraphy holds significant cultural and religious weight in Islamic art. In Essaydi's work, though, the writing, typically a symbol of male authority, is subverted. Because it is applied by the artist, another woman, to the women, reclaiming agency over their bodies and the space itself. Consider the historical context, where women’s voices were often excluded or misrepresented. Editor: That makes so much sense! So she’s using the visual language of Orientalism to critique the very power structures it represents? It becomes less about passive beauty, and more about active commentary. Curator: Precisely. Essaydi highlights the complex interplay of identity, representation, and cultural power. How do you think displaying it in a museum affects our interpretation today? Editor: I see it differently now, it really makes me think about the role of museums in shaping cultural narratives. Thank you! Curator: And thank you, it's always rewarding to re-examine art through a contemporary and socially aware lens.