Strauss & co - 15 February 2020, Cape Town

73 THE PROPERTY OF A COLLECTOR LOTS 53–74 57  HASSAN HAJJAJ MOROCCAN 1961– Peace signed, dated 2000, numbered 4/10 and inscribed with the title on the reverse photographic print and paint in the artist’s handmade tyre frame 64 by 55cm R100 000 – 150 000 Occasionally referred to as the “Warhol of Marrakech”, Hassan Hajjaj is a Moroccan artist living and working out of London. Entirely self- taught and influenced by a mix of London’s hip-hop and reggae scenes and his North African heritage, Hajjaj has a diverse practice that includes portraiture, installation, performance, fashion, and furniture design. He is best known for his photography, a medium he turned to in the late 1980s and in which he draws influence from Pop Art, fashion photography, and the studio work of fellow African photographer, Malick Sidibe. “Beyond the sometimes deliberately kitsch look and playful humour that these images exude, they also support the artist’s message. For if Hassan Hajjaj plays with the imagery of fashion brands, it is not only a response to the question of what constitutes ‘today’s new Pop Art’; but it is also a way of expressing his position on today’s consumer society, especially with respect to the act of wearing the veil. By picturing young veiled women engaging with pop art and fashion that often ignore them, the artist seeks to explore questions of identity politics”. 1 1.  https://www.contemporaryand.com/exhibition/hassan-hajjaj/