Maison de la Photographie Picks a 1940 Glaoua Portrait as Its October Photo of the Month

The Maison de la Photographie de Marrakech has chosen a portrait from the High Atlas for its October Photo of the Month, bringing a small but striking piece of Moroccan visual history back into focus.

The selected image was made by photographer Jacques Belin around 1940 and shows a woman from the Glaoua community dressed in ceremonial clothing. The museum describes the photograph as a document of the clothing traditions and material culture of Amazigh communities in the High Atlas during the middle of the twentieth century.

A portrait built around dress and adornment

The museum draws particular attention to the details of the woman’s festive dress: a forehead ornament decorated with metal elements, jewellery, chains and other pieces associated with ceremonial clothing.

Those details make the photograph useful beyond portraiture. It records how dress, ornament and identity were expressed at a particular moment in the High Atlas, turning one studio-like image into a small historical document.

Part of Marrakech’s photography archive

The photograph is held in the archives of the Maison de la Photographie, the Medina museum created in 2009 to preserve and exhibit historical images, glass plates, postcards, maps, newspapers and documentary material connected to Morocco.

Its wider collection follows how Morocco was photographed from the early years of the medium into the twentieth century, with portraits, architecture, landscapes and everyday scenes forming a visual record that extends well beyond Marrakech itself.

Worth knowing if you are visiting this month

The October selection gives visitors a specific work to look out for while the museum’s broader programme continues. The Maison de la Photographie is open every day from 09:30 to 19:00.

Adult admission is currently 80 MAD, residents pay 50 MAD and entry is free for children under 15. The same ticket also gives access to the Marrakech Music Museum.

The museum does not currently sell entrance tickets online. Payment is made on site by bank card or cash.

Practical information

Maison de la Photographie de Marrakech, Medina. Open daily from 09:30 to 19:00. Adult ticket: 80 MAD. Resident ticket: 50 MAD. Under 15: free. The ticket also includes entry to the Marrakech Music Museum.

The October Photo of the Month is Jacques Belin’s circa-1940 portrait of a woman from the Glaoua community in festive dress.

Venue photograph: DRAGANCESTIC, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.