Morocco

Based on images created at Green Olive Arts residency in Tetouan, Morocco, they were featured in Sher’s solo show Morocco Seen and Unseen: views from an outsider, at Mercury twenty Gallery, Oakland, CA. The exhibition title and 4 Filtered View images are metaphors for both the architectural window coverings which allow the mashrabiyas, elements of traditional Arabic architecture used since the Middle Ages. And for the tourist’s experience of Moroccan culture as an outsider. Most commonly used on the street side of buildings, they are informally known as “harem windows” in English. One of their major purposes is privacy as occupants can see the street without being seen. Therefore, they were often used to cover the windows of the women’s quarters of the homes. They also refer to the fact that as an outsider, one (or I) can only experience a filtered view of the culture - the art, architecture, landscape, food, colors, textures, smells and people. Most of Sher’s work over the past decade has evolved from residencies she has attended outside of the USA.