Media : Photography , Installation , Artist Book
Themes : Politics & Revolution , Memory & Disappearance , Food
We Will No Longer Eat This Bread I — 2011
7 scanographies of bread and water - Curated by Mona Laouiti
« Khobz ou mé ou Ben Ali lé. Bread and water — rather that than Ben Ali »
“Khobz ou mé ou Ben Ali lé” — We would rather eat only bread and drink only water than keep Ben Ali.
The phrase rang so loudly in my head. To me, it embodies the power of 14 January. It is the very essence of the revolution.
The first exhibition took place at Ibn Rachiq, as part of Objets de révoltes, curated by Mouna Laouiti. The idea was to work with objects recovered from the streets during the revolution. Some artists collected physical objects. I had collected a slogan — heard on 14 January in front of the Ministry of the Interior.
From this came a series of seven images: the portrait of Ben Ali — his instantly recognisable pose, deeply embedded in the collective memory of Tunisians — reproduced as a stencil using a mixture of bread and water. The images were then left to mould.
Seven key dates mark the series: from 7 November 1987, the day Ben Ali seized power from Bourguiba, to 14 January 2011, passing through the dates of the fraudulent presidential elections in which he supposedly won with 99% of the vote.
The printed images were framed in old gilded frames once used for Ben Ali’s propaganda portraits. I recovered them from the Ministry of Vocational Training two months after his fall.
The first exhibition took place at Ibn Rachiq, a cultural space in the centre of Tunis, opening directly onto the street. My work was installed right next to the entrance, visible from outside.
Some people would come in and try to take the paintings down, thinking they were the old propaganda portraits. Then, as they looked at the whole series, they would start laughing.
It was barely two months after 14 January. Everything was still raw.
Medium / Date
Series of seven photographs, framed in salvaged frames formerly used for propaganda portraits.
Ibn Rachiq, Tunis, 2011. Travelling exhibition.
We Will No Longer Eat This Bread II — Bech tech3el (ca va cramer) - 2021
Artist box-book
“ Ten years later, nothing had really changed. ”
Today, I found a mouldy loaf of bread at the bottom of a pile of old cardboard boxes.
On the tenth anniversary of the revolution, I attempt a second baking.
And yet, ten years ago, we swore we would never eat this bread again.
The work takes the form of a small artist’s book in a matchbox. Inside: a miniature artist’s book containing the series Nous ne mangerons plus de ce pain-là, a certificate of authenticity, and a single match.
One match — enough to set it all on fire.
Limited edition of 100 numbered and signed copies.
Medium / Date
Artist’s book in matchbox, limited edition of 100, 7 × 5.5 × 2.5 cm — 2021.
→ See also : Karama Survival Kit — Surreal Flag