Opal Tometi

Artist Hajjaj, Hassan Moroccan, b. 1961

Date2018

MediumMetallic Lambda Print

DimensionsImage: 28 1/2 x 19 in. (72.4 x 48.3 cm)

Credit LineMuseum Purchase with support from the David C. and Sarajean Ruttenberg Impact Fund for Photography

Object number2023:150

About the ArtistThe ongoing series, My Rockstars, features hundreds of cultural figures, musicians, and artists, all striking physical postures that exude the same vibrance and energy as the North African textiles that he hand-styles around them. The frames are handcrafted by the artist and hold cans of commonplace pantry items connected to either Moroccan culture or the cultural background of each subject. Hajjaj can be considered within a present cultural moment of global artists of color who are repositioning familiar elements of heritage as celebrated adornments, as these artists honor and catalogue their own definitions of royalty.

The Rockstars presented here include: Opal Tometi, a Nigerian-American activist and one of three women co-founders of the Black Lives Matter movement; Omar Offendum a Syrian-American rapper-poet and hip-hop artist known for his impactful music and poetry, addressing themes of identity, immigration, and the Arab-American experience; and Riz Ahmed, a British actor, rapper and activist who has made significant contributions to the world of entertainment and advocacy, reflecting his personal experiences as a British-Pakistani artist.

Hajjaj was born in Larache, Morocco. His work is in the collections of the Brooklyn Museum, New York City; the British Museum, London; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles; Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, the Farjam Collection, Dubai; and Institute du Monde Arabe, Paris, among others. Hajjaj was the winner of the 2011 Sovereign Middle East and African Art Prize and was shortlisted for Victoria & Albert Museum’s Jameel Prize in 2009. In 2020, Hajjaj was commissioned by Vogue to photograph popstar Billie Eilish for the cover of their March magazine. He lives and works between London, United Kingdom, and Marrakech, Morocco.