Najia Mehadji

For the past half-century, the work of French-Moroccan artist Najia Mehadji has followed a remarkable trajectory. Sensitive to the enduring survival of forms, her work stands as an unprecedented expression of neo-symbolism.

From her early charcoal drawings – conceived as much as theatrical performances as plastic creations – to the later works that exalt the brushstroke, via creations that enigmatically evoke sacred architecture or those in which ornamental flowers meld pure form and symbolism, Najia Mehadji’s poetics have found a true source of creative vitality in the dialogue between Western pictorial modernism and Sufi esotericism, and in the memory of Renaissance and Art Nouveau masterpieces.