Cotton towel, dye, ink, metal chain, cotton thread, 2019
Majdouline addresses the possible shifts in transmission of cultural identity. In this perspective, the towels are representations of and witnesses to the potential change, perpetuation, and loss of culture and tradition post-migration. They speak of a relationship with domesticity that explores the sometimes absurd paths to understanding severed connections to cultural heritage. Using the towel as a canvas, Sabiri has integrated and layered dyeing and printing processes then embellished it with metal chain and other contrasting materials. Through this type of work she wishes to foil and reflect on the need for control inherent to anxiety, and responding to each layer is also a practice of cultivating the resilience necessary to adaptation. This work underlines and acknowledges the importance of intuition in Sabiri’s cultural heritage, and the value that she still wishes to grant it today.
Fatine-Violette Sabiri is a multidisciplinary artist who intuitively examines personal narratives. Sabiri’s photographs take multiple forms, from editorial fashion work and commissioned portraits to personal documentary images. In the resulting body of work, she balances autobiography and storytelling and cultivates the importance of adaptation and humour. Born in Morocco, Sabiri lives and works in Montréal. She holds a BFA in studio arts from Concordia University. Her work has been presented in solo and group exhibitions, including at Parc Offsite and Patel Brown (both Montréal, 2023), Espace Maurice and Joe Project (both Montréal, 2022), Joys (Toronto, 2022), Le 18 (Marrakesh, 2021), Jedna Dva Tři Gallery (Prague, 2020), and Soon.tw (Montréal, 2017). She is the 2022 recipient of the Burtynsky Grant awarded by the Scotiabank Contact Photography Festival.