Moroccan Jewish handicrafts go on display in Israeli city of Hadera

From May 16 to 25, the northern Israeli city of Hadera will host “Diyala,” an exhibition of Moroccan traditional items with the participation of over 30 craftsmen from the School of Traditional Moroccan Jewish Arts.

This unique exhibition will combine works of ceramic, sculpture, printmaking, weaving, musical, and a variety of other mosaic arts, representing the diverse heritage of Moroccan Jewish culture.

In honor of the event, a meeting was held in the Moroccan city of Fez at the Chamber of Arts and Crafts of the Fez-Meknes region, attended by the Chamber’s director Abdelmalek al-Boutien and the coordinator of relations between the Chamber and the city of Hadera, Abraham Avizmir.

Thanks to the Abraham Accords—which saw Israel normalize ties with a number of Arab states, including Morocco—the Israeli market is now considered particularly promising for marketing traditional Moroccan products. 

The idea for the exhibit arose after the visit of a delegation from Hadera to Fez, the second-largest city in Morocco and famous for its warm historical connection with the Jewish people. The mayor of Fez is also expected to visit the exhibition. 

“We are delighted to host an exhibition in Hadera that will allow Moroccan artists to present their work for the first time in Israel. This is an event that connects our two peoples through culture and art. I invite everyone to come to Hadera for this unique, original, and inspiring exhibition, with dozens of Moroccan artisans who will present handicrafts from the traditional cultural mosaic of the Jews of Morocco,” said Hadera Mayor Nir Ben Haim.