The AiM International Biennale (formerly the Arts in Marrakech Festival) first took place in September 2005 [1] It was set up by Vanessa Branson and Abel Damoussi. It is the first major Trilingual (English, Arabic & French) festival in North Africa.[2]. It focuses on cutting-edge contemporary Visual art, Literature and Film. It consists of a main Visual Arts Exhibition, other arts exhibitions, installations and happenings, discussions, debates and screenings based in the eclectic venues and settings that Marrakech has to offer.
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The 2005 festival was directed by Pablo Ganguli and included many prestigious participants and guests including Hanif Kureishi, Esther Freud and Annie Lennox, as well as the debut exhibition of the Wonderful Fund Collection at the Museum of Marrackech[3]. This included artists such us Sarah Lucas, Grayson Perry, Jake and Dinos Chapman, Tracey Emin and Gavin Turk[4].
The 2007 festival bought together acclaimed writers, directors and artists from across Morocco and the world together in a rich forum of debate and cooperation. It grew in the number of participants and attendees and was Coordinated by Clare Azzougarh.
The main Visual Arts Exhibition was of South African photography as well as the L’appartement 22 project curated by Abdellah Karroum[5]. The venues included the Marrakech Museum, ESAV Film School, Royal Theatre, Riad El Fenn, Riad Magi and Ksour Agafay.
Yassin Adnan, James Dearden, Faouzi Bensaidi, Walter Lassally, Deborah Moggach, Sussan Deyhim, Farida Benlyazid, Josdi Bieber, John Boorman, Ruth Charney, Sarah Curtis, William Dalrymple, Ross Douglas, Edmond El Maleh, Hamid Fardjad, David Goldblatt, Richard E. Grant, Mohsin Hamid, Sally Hampson, Christopher Hampton, Richard Horowitz, Pieter Hugo, Hari Kunzru, Nick Laird, Santu Mofoken, Daniel Morden, Zwelethu Mthethwa, Zanele Muhole, Sam Neave, Mark Peploe, Simon Prosser, Gabriel Range, Tahir Shah, Hardeep Singh Kohli, Zadie Smith, Ian Softely, Mikhael Subotsky, Guy Tillim, Nontsikelelo Veleko, Alan Yentob.
The 3rd Edition of the AiM International Biennale 2009 directed by Vanessa Branson and coordinated by Clare Azzougarh was launched in November 2009. The main Visual Arts Exhibition, "A Proposal for Articulating Works and Places" was curated by Abdellah Karroum [6] and held in the Palais Bahia. The Exhibition premiered works by Francis Alys, Yto Barrada, Lordana Longo and Batoul S'Himi amoungst many others. Other Events included Julien Fisera and Laurent P. Berger Directing the Stories of Order and Dissorder which placed storytellers in taxis around the city; a Sketch Gallery London Curated by Victoria Brooks, Giles Round and Mark Ariel Waller bought their project 'Taverna Especial to an ancient Riad in the Medina. Attendees also include Turner-nominee Isaac Julien, BBC TV arts executive Alan Yentob and Morrocan film director Faouzi Bensaidi, actress Kim Cattrall and artist and film-maker Julian Schnabel, who took part in many different, discussions and debates at venues including ESAV film school, Riad El Fenn and Ksour Agafay.
Adel Abdessemed, Bani Abidi, Yassin Adnan, Mark Aerial-Waller, Sofia Aguiar, Mustapha Akrim, Sobhi Al-Zobaidi, Francis Alys, Noureddine Amir, Alice Anderson, Younes Baba-Ali, Raffaella Barker, Yto Barada, Marie-Louise Belarbi, Faouzi Bensaidi, Rachid Benzine, Laurent P. Berger, Omar Berrada, Katrine Boorman, John Boorman, Franck Bragigand, Victoria Brooks, Francois Bucher, Kim Cattrall, Chto delat?, Tomas Colaco, Stuart Comer, Claudia Cristovao, Shezad Dawood, Sana El Aji, Ahmed El Maanouni, Nina Esber, Charles Esche, Patricia Esquivias, Hamid Fardjad, Seamus Farrell, Eric Fellner, James Fenton, Julien Fisera, Pedro Gomez-Egana, Joana Hadjithomas, Leila Hafyane, Sally Hampson, Marius Hansen, John Hillcoat, Chourouk Hriech, Fadwa Islah, Isaac Julien, Abdellah Karroum, Bouchra Khalili, Hassan Khan, Jooyoung Lee, Rebecca Lenkiewicz Loredana Longo, Bernard Marcade, James Marsh, Mourad Mazouz, Vincent Melilli, Danny Moynihan, Mark Nash, Heidi Nikolaisen, Otobong Nkanga, Kristina Norman, Andrew O'Hagan, Eleanor O'Keeffe, Bouchra Ouezgane, Catherine Poncin, Pere Portabella, Alexandra Pringle, Younes Rahmoun, Jose Roca, Giles Round, Rasha Salti, Jerome Schlomoff, Julian Schnabel, Wael Shawky, Hardeep Singh-Kohli, Kathryn Smith, Ahdaf Soueif, Anna Steiger, Anne Szefer Karlsen, Abdellah Taïa, Naoko Takahashi, Barbara Trapido, Justine Triet, DJ U-Cef, Nontsikelelo Veleko, John Walsh, James Webb, Alan Yentob, Hisham Zaman, John Zarobell.