Using a selection of films, photographs, installations and sculptures, Bourouissa brings together
works that bear witness to various forms of violence stemming from colonialist ideologies. Whether it is everyday and trivialized or institutional, it is a violence that he and many other racialized people know and have suffered. Nevertheless, Bourouissa’s works are far from confrontational. On the contrary: while they allow us to immerse ourselves in the intimate sphere of their protagonists, they create a sense of humanity in which dignity triumphs over humiliation. Art becomes a strategy of defense and self-empowerment, enabling individuals to reclaim their history – be it a prisoner, a former patient of a psychiatric clinic, or Bourouissa’s aunt Noubia (photo), who migrated to Osnabrück and lived there until her death.
The exhibition was curated by guest curator Oriane Durand
Accompanying program
Director’s Tour with Kathleen Rahn
As part of a tour with Marta Director Kathleen Rahn, you will walk through the exhibitions “Mohamed Bourouissa – Pour Noubia” and “Ingrid Wiener – Einfach machen und tun.” She will explain interesting facts about the artists and their works, as well as the creation of the exhibitions.
Ticket
3.50 euros plus exhibition entrance fee
Registration
no registration required, tickets online or at the museum box office
Artist Talk with Mohamed Bourouissa and Guest Curator Oriane Durand for the Finissage
On the last day of the current exhibition Mohamed Bourouissa – Pour Noubia, the artist will return to Marta in January. The conversation between Bourouissa and guest curator Oriane Durand on the occasion of the finissage will provide valuable insights into his work, individual pieces, and the creation process of this solo exhibition.
The exhibition at Marta Herford is the largest to date in Germany by the Algerian-born, Paris-based artist Mohamed Bourouissa (*1978). In a poetic manner and through captivating spatial installations in the Gehry Galleries, the artist addresses themes, using individual protagonists, that range from an ongoing colonial history and structural discrimination to personal memory.
Bourouissa studied photography, among other subjects, at the École nationale supérieure des Arts Décoratifs in Paris (2008) and at Le Fresnoy (2008–2010). He lives and works in Paris. As an interdisciplinary artist, he works with the media of photography, video, installation, sculpture, and drawings. At the center of his artistic exploration are themes such as social dynamics, power relations, and identity. In this context, marginalized groups and individuals “on the fringes of society” are consistently the protagonists of his works.
Bourouissa’s works have been presented internationally in numerous solo and group exhibitions. They are part of significant public and private collections, including the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Finnish Museum of Photography, Helsinki; Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris; Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Los Angeles; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; and the Philara Collection, Düsseldorf.
His work has been recognized with numerous awards, including at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival (2025), the International Short Film Festival (2025), the Photobook Prize of the Paris Photo – Aperture Foundation for the book Périphérique (2022), the Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize (2020), the Prix Fondation Blachère (2010), the Prix Studio Collector of the Fondation Antoine de Galbert (2007), and the first prize at Rencontres d’Arles (2007). He was also nominated for the Mario Merz Prize (2024), the Prix Marcel Duchamp (2018), and the Prix Pictet (2017).
Oriane Durand is a freelance curator and author living in France and Germany. The art historian, who holds a degree, previously directed, among other institutions, the Kunstverein Dortmund and the Kunstverein Bielefeld. In her curatorial practice, her interest lies in discovering young artists and experimental practices. For Marta Herford, she developed this largest overview exhibition of the artist in Germany to date, together with Mohamed Bourouissa.
Information
Event in the Marta Forum
Free admission
Thanks
Marta Partners
We would like to express our sincere thanks to the Marta Herford Corporate Partners and Corporate Premium Partners, as well as the Marta Fund for New Art, for their long-term support of our program.
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