Drawing inspiration from traditional weaving techniques, oral storytelling,

and contemporary modes of production, Tiɣrist - The Threads of Exile invites

reflection on textile as a language of resistance and a vessel of memory - a

sensitive archive.

This narrative is rooted in the migration of the artist’s family from

Bouira, Algeria - a region known for its textile craftsmanship and pottery,

where manual labor was accompanied by collective songs and poetry — to

Roubaix, France, the former industrial capital of textiles.

This displacement profoundly transformed their relationship to

work, to others, and to belonging. It is part of a broader history: that of

the rural exodus driven by the promise of urban life, where the pursuit of

emancipation often intertwines with experiences of loss and uprooting. A

symbolic resonance emerges as well, since Roubaix is an anagram of Bouira,

differing by only one letter.