The Rezidan project to celebrate culture!

Published on September 8, 2022

The Rezidan project to celebrate culture!

Moka Smart City has introduced the Rezidan project to reinforce its support for arts and culture. The aim is to transform the city by developing public art in the area and welcoming emerging talent through an artistic residency programme. Learn more about the project.

Rezidan was launched in 2022 to bring the arts (back) to the fore in Moka Smart City! The purpose of this long-term project is to celebrate the city’s heritage and enhance its cultural programme while strengthening the sense of belonging and conveying positive values to local residents.

In addition to commissioning works of art (murals, performances, etc.), Moka Smart City uses Rezidan to offer a residency programme for emerging and established artists in dedicated spaces like the studios at Les Kocottes. An ideal setting to carry out an artistic project while enjoying a well-equipped space with various tools, such as mentoring!

“Mokassiens”, a collaborative documentary photography residency

A first collaborative documentary photography residency named “Mokassiens” was launched in late July 2022. The objective was to tell the story of Moka through the eyes of three photographers with different perceptions and sensitivities. The residency has enabled the development of individual photographic voices while encouraging a collaborative creative process!

Laurent de Froberville, Meha Desai and Anne-Sarah Nicolin spent two weeks freely exploring the Saint Pierre and Petit Verger area in order to document the residents’ lives. They also had a well-equipped collective space at Les Kocottes in Saint Pierre and received guidance from Romain Philippon, a professional photographer from Reunion Island who gave them some valuable advice.

The artists were encouraged to develop their own scenarios for the residency: Meha Desai focused on interior spaces and details of daily life to create a portrait of some residents while Laurent de Froberville and Anne-Sara Nicolin worked on public spaces and portraits.

A memorable experience for the artists

“I learned a lot alongside other photographers during this residency! We had a day-to-day action plan and let the city guide us. I wanted to use my photos to share the authentic side of Moka, and connecting with the people and their lives was a really special experience,” says Anne-Sarah Nicolin enthusiastically.

“The collaborative spirit was definitely present, and this residency is my best photographic experience so far! We based our approach on the respect between the photographer and the person being photographed as well as the desire to understand and listen to their stories. I personally focused on the way in which the villagers have shaped their immediate and personal environment through their culture, traditions, beliefs, personalities, etc.,” says Laurent de Froberville.

Meha Desai, who wanted to use the residency to create portraits of people only through photos of the space they occupy and build, echoes that thought. “This collective residency was very rewarding: photography is often a solitary process and working with other photographers was quite refreshing. We were able to work alone and then get together to discuss and make an assessment. It helped me a lot!”

Public art at the heart of Moka

According to ENL Property’s Arts and Culture Manager, Mathieu Pigeot, the number of such residencies will increase in the future. “This first residency confirms the value of collaborative projects, as well as the advantage of having a well-equipped and well-located studio. And it was a real pleasure to see how the work of these photographers progressed: the creativity and spirit of collaboration were present, and they delivered high-quality work. Before the end of 2022, a large-scale open-air exhibition will showcase the work of these artists!

“Émergence” was held simultaneously with “Mokassiens”; this residency programme focused on the development of emerging talent in visual arts and contemporary art. Two artists specialised in printmaking from Reunion (Yannick Candin and Rung-Tsu Chang from Hermine Studio) visited Mauritius in August 2022. They worked on the concept of interior space and the symbol of sugarcane inflorescence in collaboration with the MGI, which made its printmaking workshop available to the artists.

Not only that, Rezidan also aims to host regular “Art Talks”! The very first in the series was held on 20 August 2022, featuring an exchange between Hermine Studio’s printmakers and the photographer, Meha Desai on the topic of Inner Worlds: an obvious discussion for these artists, who investigate the ideas of domestic space and its meaning.

The Rezidan project will include other occasional events like the creation of murals. Over the first weekend of September 2022, five artists – Émilien Jubeau, Prem Arts, Lucid Design, Brian Lamoureux and Daphné Doomun – created original murals on various bus stops and walls of Moka. The aim was to celebrate the multiculturalism and history of the city. Do you think you will be able to spot them?

For more information about Rezidan and the dates for the upcoming residencies and cultural projects, follow Moka, Ville de Culture on:

➤ Website

➤ Facebook

➤ Instagram

The Rezidan project to celebrate culture!