Hassan Hajjaj / Morocco

Morocco born 1961, emigrated to England 1975

Artist Hassan Hajjaj has transformed the NGV’s Gallery Kitchen into a Moroccan tea house. In this vibrant environment styled and furnished with seating, wallpaper, Moroccan signage, light fittings, a menu and soundtrack, visitors can experience noss noss (half and half), 2017, a term used in Morocco for coffee and milk. Hassan has adopted the words to describe both his approach to photography and his life spent straddling the different cultures of London and Marrakesh, where he lives and works.

The installation also houses Hajjaj’s studio portraits of his friends: fellow artists, musicians and fashion designers. With a creative eye and passion for mishmashed colours, for these photographs Hajjaj used readymade floor mats and wall coverings as decorative backdrops, and created costumes that combine traditional African fabrics with global luxury brands. The artist presents his photographs in individually crafted frames, made from brightly painted motorcycle tires, which function as brilliantly coloured sculptural ‘settings’ for his portraits.

Hassan Hajjaj invites you to lounge in his installation while visiting the gallery, view his works while taking tea and have your photograph taken in his interactive Noss Noss Studio.

BIO

Hassan Hajjaj lives and works both in London and Marrakesh. He has participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Africa, the Middle East, Europe and the United States. He has also held solo shows at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, in 2005; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, in 2013 and 2015; and the British Museum, London, in 2016.