In El Jadida, looking at the craft behind Villes flottantes
The exhibition announced at the Institut français prompts reflection on how craft work is credited within digital creation.
The Institut français in El Jadida announces Villes flottantes from 5 to 28 November, with free admission and an opening scheduled for Thursday at 6.30 pm. The programme consulted on 5 November is an announcement, not a report from a visit.
The Moroccan section combines embroidered murals with research into symbols. The organiser names Iminouzerg, Timendotes and Brodeuse Voyageuse. The official presentation of the Essaouira stop identifies artists Elsa Mroziewicz and Cécile Palusinski and describes the use of augmented reality.
This meeting of textiles and digital media invites attention to how things are made. An animation may draw a visitor in; on its own, it does not explain who chose the motifs, stitched the work or helped make artistic decisions. Naming collaborators provides a starting point for those questions.
Our suggestion is therefore to look closely at the material before activating the image. Interpretation also deserves to be judged by how clearly it explains collective work. The pages consulted describe the project's intention, without allowing an assessment of visitors' actual experience.
Related reading: embroidery as creation.