
M’barek Bouhchichi Moroccan , b. 1975
Stick charts 2, 2025
Brass
164h x 163w cm
MB-000129
Inspired by traditional navigation tools used in the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean, Stick Charts (2025) maps the journey of two people who crossed the Sahara Desert, as reconstructed...
Inspired by traditional navigation tools used in the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean, Stick Charts (2025) maps the journey of two people who crossed the Sahara Desert, as reconstructed by the artist from their oral testimonies. Bouhchichi employs a syntax of maritime navigation to translate trans-Saharan crossings. The works are made out of brass casts of eucalyptus branches and cowrie shells. Originally from Australia, the eucalyptus tree was introduced to Africa in the 19th century by Western colonial settlers. Today, although common in countries like Morocco and Tunisia, it is poorly suited to their climates and contributes to soil drying—a reminder that imperialism forcibly uproots and relocates both human and non-human lives, in total disregard of all context. Paradoxically, North African eucalyptus forests currently provide shelter to people on migration trails, offering them a place to hide and rest before their final push toward the Mediterranean. As for cowrie shells, they were introduced into West Africa by Arab traders in the 8th century and used as currency for many centuries, including in the trans-Saharan trade. In Stick Charts, the shells indicate points on the road where migrants had to make payments to be granted passage; they signal obstacles on their itinerary that are also doorways into the future. A migrant journey is a complex network of spatial paradoxes.