TO THE MARGINS
Belonging provides human beings with a foundational sense of security. In Morocco, this bond has long been woven into a dense and cohesive social fabric, where mutual neighborhood aid and community life served as vital resources for all. This heritage is deeply rooted in the history of our medinas: behind their ramparts, merchants, artisans, dignitaries, and low-income families coexisted harmoniously. They shared a common living space and a collective identity within the city. The walls of yesteryear did not segregate social classes; they enclosed and shielded the community as a whole.
Today, Moroccan cities are undergoing profound urban transformations. This structural modernization, a legitimate source of national pride, is reshaping our cities and urban landscapes. Yet, it simultaneously raises critical questions regarding memory, belonging, and social cohesion. Driven by soaring real estate values and emerging urban dynamics, certain demographics are gradually being marginalized and displaced from city centers, while others occupy the most premium spaces. These structural shifts disrupt long-standing social balances and challenge the position of the individual within these new urban paradigms.
The theme of this sixth edition, “On the Margins,” invites artists to explore these shifting boundaries—whether geographical, social, cultural, or symbolic—by centering on those whose narratives, lived experiences, and memories are frequently relegated to the periphery of dominant discourse. The margin thus serves as a critical vantage point for observing contemporary transformations, while also functioning as a space for resistance, creative agency, and reinvention. In this spirit, Bayt Al Fenn encourages participants this year to position themselves at the intersection of these urban mutations to map the physical and human contours of our cities. Where redevelopment plans map out new territories, the artist has the unique capacity to uncover what escapes administrative framework: the deep-seated memories attached to places, daily socio-cultural routines, neighborhood networks, and organic forms of solidarity, alongside the intimate experience of displacement, rupture, and the structural realignments they generate.
By challenging the dichotomies of center and periphery, visibility and invisibility, as well as inclusion and exclusion, this sixth edition prompts a deeper reflection on the urban models we are collectively developing. By shedding light on the dynamics unfolding on the margins, artistic creation can foster new perspectives on community engagement, urban memory, and the shared futures we choose to build together.