The Open Studio, in the field of contemporary art, is an « open doors » event where artists present their ongoing work to the public. Typically, artists organize this type of Open Studio when they are working in a studio for a set period of time.
« As for me, as someone who frequently changes residence and wishes to share my ongoing work, I decided to create ‘Nomad Open Studios.’ Thus, my work and my studio move with me, becoming part of my experience of exile. »
The Nomad Open Studio has had three different stations since its creation in January 2024 and dreams of new stations.
The first station: De l’Image à l’Atelier, Sousse, Tunisia.
« Nomad Open Studio: IMAGES AND MIGRATION »
I have always dreamed of organizing an Open Studio, but my constant travels from one city to another have prevented me from finding the stability and comfort necessary to have my own studio. However, when Souad Mani invited me to present my artistic and research work, I decided to adapt this idea by organizing a nomadic Open Studio, reflecting my lifestyle and in harmony with the context of my artistic and research projects.
« Imprinted by her travels, Aya’s reflections revealed her search for self through the journeys and stories of the migrant women she interviewed and met. This search was materialized through a multitude of artistic studies ranging from drawing to the writing of travel journals, to the collection of shopping lists from her clients and her flight tickets, as well as the analog photography she created using expired film. Her photos showed a very unique effect and atmosphere on the sensitive paper.
Thus, through her research process, Aya made visible a double exposure of images, manifested through all the mediums she used. This technical double exposure revealed her hidden desire to rediscover or shape herself as a being and to trace a path between the countries she has traveled: France, Tunisia, and Egypt.«
Souad Mani, Visual artist, teacher, artistic director of the Delta association, founder of De l’Image à l’Atelier and eSeda.lab.
The photos were taken by Souad Mani.
The Second Stage: CAREP, Paris, France
As part of the cycle « Migrations and Arab Societies », organized by the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies (CAREP) in Paris, France, I had the honor of participating in the final conference, titled « Arts and Migrations. »
On this occasion, I presented my work-in-progress, developed during a research stay in Egypt and France. This evolving project weaves together fragments of stories: texts, images, photographs, personal testimonies, and videos.
Its aim is to create a living archive—a visual and sensitive narrative tracing the journeys of migrant and exiled women from the MENA region (Middle East and North Africa).
The Third Station: Bois Perrin, CAPS Graduate School of Research, Rennes, France.
During this third stage, I occupied the former canteen building at Bois Perrin to exhibit and share the initial results of my work—a project that strives to create a living archive: a visual narrative tracing the journeys of migrant and exiled women from the MENA region (Middle East and North Africa).
Bois Perrin, once a child psychiatry unit of the Guillaume-Régnier Hospital, became our shelter—a space where we reimagined research, where we created a « university beyond walls. » We were among the last « inhabitants » of these buildings before their transformation into a residential neighborhood, scheduled for 2025.
Despite my complicated relationship with Rennes—a city that has never truly felt like home, especially amidst my constant movements between Tunisia, Egypt, and Paris—Bois Perrin was an exception. These buildings were the only place in Rennes where I genuinely felt at home. But journeys, by their nature, continue. And as Bois Perrin fades into memory, it too becomes part of the archive.
What remains are the traces: images, photographs, texts, and videos. These fragments endure, continuing their path toward the creation of a visual narrative.
One day, perhaps, these images, these texts, these stories will grow. They will become something greater—a roof, a home, a new spatial dimension. A space that I will share with the women I have met along this journey, the ones I have yet to meet, and those who see themselves in this narrative. A space for anyone who dreams of a place to call home.
Aya Chriki 