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Rabat – A multinational effort to recreate a pre-Islamic culture that included the work of some skilled Moroccan weavers is set to be on display during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The Moroccan women used their skills to help create a Majlis, a massive pavilion made of cloth and wood, and an integral part of pre-Islamic Arab society.
The Majlis, which roughly translates to “lounge” or “council,” was a multifunctional structure built by Arabs in pre-Islamic society and used to host important religious, tribal, and social events. Constructed of light materials such as wood and woven cloth, it was designed to host large gatherings, and its simple design allowed to be quickly set up, broken down, and transported according to the needs of the nomadic Arab tribes.
The Majlis was formally added to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2015. The UNESCO website officially defines an Intangible Cultural Heritage as “traditions or living expressions inherited from our ancestors,” such as “oral traditions,” “rituals,” and “knowledge and skills to produce traditional crafts.” The Majilis is a perfect embodiment of these qualities, especially as knowledge of its construction was passed down from generation to generation amongst the ancient Arab people.
Making the recently constructed Majlis exceptional is that it was made collectively in “a combined effort by craftspeople from Morocco, Colombia and Italy,” according to news sources.
The project was initially designed by Simon Velez and Stefana Simic, two award winning architects based in Bogota, Colombia. The bamboo frame for the Majlis was also constructed in Colombia. But, for the woolen panels that would form the walls, the pair sought to recruit help from Morocco.
To complete the project, Moroccan craftsman Ahmed Chmitti teamed up with a group of women who specialized in weaving from the small city of Boujdad in central Morocco. Additionally, the carpet was made by the Ain Leuh Women’s Weaving Co-op, a 50 year old group based in the Atlas mountains working to empower Amazigh women and to promote their traditions and art.
After completion, the project was shipped in individual pieces to Venice, Italy, to be put on display at the 2021 Venice Architectural Exhibition. The traditional community importance of the Majlis and the cooperative nature of its construction of this display were a perfect fit for the theme for the show this year: “How will we live together?”
Velez told news source Designbloom that the artists were “trying to make a place for learning…from many places of the world, and for many different ages.”
After its display in Venice, the Majlis will do a brief global tour before stopping in Qatar for the 2022 World Cup, where it may serve as an example of the possibilities of cultural exchange and communication.
