01. Sakhra
Moulay Bouchta al-Khamar (Morocco)
Sakhra is a cultural project that is very close to Caravane Tighmert. Thus, Abdeljalil Saouli participated in the first two editions (2015 and 2016) and Gilles Aubry in the third (2017). During Gilles' stay in Tighmert, he wanted to discover and conduct research in other Moroccan territories, so I suggested that he meet Ramia Beladel and Abdeljalil (who both came to the oasis in 2015 and 2016). For me, it was also Tighmert that made me want to continue my research as an architect, and Sakhra was an excuse to return several times to Moulay Bouchta al-Khamar. In addition, the Caravane Tighmert experience also allowed us to move forward more quickly with the design of a project in a place that had many similarities with Tighmert: a striking landscape; a little-known history; a remote region, in the geographical sense but also politically, socially, economically, and culturally; a key figure in the local community, Ahmed Dabah in Tighmert, Abdeljalil Saouli in Moulay Bouchta; vernacular earthen architecture but formally quite different...
In short, Sakhra is a project with many parallels to Caravane Tighmert, but with its own identity. It is a story that begins with encounters and human relationships, which give rise to research and the need to share the potential of a place with others.
This is not the official Sakhra website; this is my own vision of what it means for me Sakhra; Gilles has shared his point of view on the website parastatal.
Credits texts, photos and drawings: Carlos Pérez Marín