Artist research - Hassan Hajjaj
Hajjaj is a contemporary photographer originally from Morocco. A lot of his images are placed within frames made up of well known brands taking on a fine art and popular culture feeling within them, also the use of bright colours and interesting backgrounds making the images stand out. ‘Kesh Angels’ was a project that Hajjaj created was focused around the bike culture of Marrakesh; the project was a
take on the ‘Hell’s Angels gang in America’ The models that Hajjaj uses are close friends of his, so he has already established a connection with the individuals that he uses. He described the girls as being “girls who usually paint henna tattoos on tourists in the main square, but you still wouldn’t want to run into them in a dark alley”, “These girls are tough.”
I am especially interested by the work that Hajjaj creates, because although his work is staged and a lot of these women don’t even own their own motorcycle. But it is not so much about the aesthetics of the images that I am interested in, its more about how Hajjaj has given these women a voice, allowing them to take control of the way that they are posed; giving them a sense of power in these images.
take on the ‘Hell’s Angels gang in America’ The models that Hajjaj uses are close friends of his, so he has already established a connection with the individuals that he uses. He described the girls as being “girls who usually paint henna tattoos on tourists in the main square, but you still wouldn’t want to run into them in a dark alley”, “These girls are tough.”
I am especially interested by the work that Hajjaj creates, because although his work is staged and a lot of these women don’t even own their own motorcycle. But it is not so much about the aesthetics of the images that I am interested in, its more about how Hajjaj has given these women a voice, allowing them to take control of the way that they are posed; giving them a sense of power in these images.
