"Un album qui fourmille d’idées et d’énergie." Le Monde
"Zineb Benjelloun livre un beau témoignage, un album singulier qui retranscrit avec sensibilité le quotidien d’une maison marocaine." Actuallitté
"Tout en noir & blanc, mais parfois haut en couleur." Casemate
The graphic novel debut from a budding Moroccan artist
Subtly funny and terribly relevant, Darna (our home in Arabic) documents the history of colonial and postcolonial Morocco and the daily lives of members of the author’s family over three generations. Zineb Benjelloun’s family includes some striking characters... Their moments of glory and fall, of joy and drama, punctuate the main events of their country. Through this story, the author questions the Moroccan society and how it shapes individuals, as well as the connection between national history and family history.
Centered around the family’s house in Casablanca and all its inhabitants, the story is developed from extensive archives found both in public and private collections, video and audio recordings, and family testimonies.
17 x 24 cm, softcover
160 pages
b&w
Zineb Benjelloun was born in Rabat, Morocco, in 1984. She is a visual artist and documentary filmmaker. After working working briefly for a TV channel in Morocco, she has focused on drawing and writing since 2013. Zineb Benjelloun has exhibited in several countries, in places such as La Gaîté lyrique in Paris, Voice Gallery in Marrakech, Ministerium für Illustration in Berlin, La Cité de la bande dessinée in Angoulême and Galerie Tanit in Beirut. She has designed visual identities for cultural events, brands and associations including Rock en Seine in Paris, Les Nuits sonores in Tangier and Quartiers du monde in Rabat. Her illustrations have been published in various magazines (Samandal in Lebanon, Dyptique and Skefkef in Morocco, Lab Morocco, Lab 619 in Tunisia, Slanted in Germany and Fractal in Mexico). Her first graphic novel, Darna, was published in France in 2023 by Editions çà et là.
Zineb Benjelloun currently lives in Casablanca.