Rabat, Morocco - Recent

An art festival is held on the world's first museum boat in Rabat, the capital city of Morocco, offering distinguished cultural experience to local residents and visitors coming afar.

The itinerant art festival takes place aboard a large museum ship that is planned to sail to 15 countries in the Mediterranean, cradle of great civilizations and melting pot of many cultures from early 2024 to 2026.

This project was introduced by the Art Explora Foundation in 2024, aiming to reduce cultural barriers and promote a broader and more democratic engagement with the arts.

The Mediterranean Sea has a long and storied history. Before the Roman Empire saw it as a huge domestic lake, the Greeks and Carthaginians battled for supremacy along its long shores. Over the centuries, its coastline and many islands have been home to millions of people who practiced and shared different cultures and traditions. At the heart of Mediterranean history is its remarkable relationship with art.

Designed to innovate the way of telling stories of art, this traveling art gallery gave visitors an immersive experience through several centuries.

Visitors also hailed the creativity that was used to transform a traditional art show into a unique cultural tourism experience.

Opening in Malta the spring of this year, the Art Explora festival will continue the journey in the Mediterranean basin. The next stop is Malaga, a coastal city in Spain.

Shotlist:
Rabat, Morocco - Recent:
1. Cityscape;
2. Various of museum boat, flags;
3. Various of visitors gathering at port;
4. SOUNDBITE (French,dubbed in English) Laila Haida, stages commissioner, Art Explora Festival (partially overlaid with shot 5):
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"The project Art Explora started with the ambition to connect the banks of the Mediterranean and a desire to bring the history of the Mediterranean closer together.";
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5. Visitors watching digital exhibition on museum boat;
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6. Various of visitors watching digital exhibition;
7. SOUNDBITE (Arabic,dubbed in English) Ahmed Elbzioui, Moroccan heritage expert (partially overlaid with shot 8):
"There is so much to say about marine history. Most people don't know anything about this rich field in Morocco and the Mediterranean basin. It's important to tell the story from Moroccan and European perspectives.";
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8. Visitors watching digital exhibition;
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9. Various of visitors watching digital exhibition on museum boat;
10. SOUNDBITE (French,dubbed in English) Wahiba Aitfares, French visitor (partially overlaid with shot 11):
"It was really very interesting. I came from France. I felt as if we were at the Louvres Museum. The representation of the paintings was well done. It was well illustrated and explained. I would recommend this amazing experience for visitors who want to discover art in antiquity, renaissance, 17th Century and contemporary paintings.";
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11. Various of visitors watching digital exhibition on museum boat;
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12. Various of visitors watching digital exhibition on museum boat;
13. SOUNDBITE (French,dubbed in English) Wiaam Benabou, visitor:
"I enjoyed the immersive experience so much from the beginning until the end. This is a very good initiative.";
14. Digital exhibition;
15. Visitors watching digital exhibition;
16. SOUNDBITE (English) Fatemazahra Karoum, visitor (partially overlaid with shot 17):
"It's very innovative to have an initiative like this; to have a boat that goes through multiple countries in the world to share this universal experience of enjoying art.";
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17. Various of visitors watching digital exhibition on museum boat;
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18. Various of digital exhibition;
19. Visitors watching digital exhibition on museum boat.

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