For the first time, over one hundred imaginative carpets, created by the women of Morocco's Aït Khebbach nomadic tribe, have made their way from the sandy Sahara desert of their origins to comprise the final exhibition of Zurich's, Museum Bellerive until January the 29th 2017. The exhibition, Couleurs Désert-- made up of items from the private collection of Eric Ossart and Arnaud Mautieres, through the curatorial support of the Musée Bargoin in Clermont-Ferrand--highlights the beauty of these traditional cultural specimens through not only the carpets themselves, but also through a compilation of photographs and videos taken by Serge Anton, which bring the lives of the over twenty weaver-women who created them "to life."

The colorful heritage of these carpets reads as a history of the tribe itself, since so much of its cultural development can be seen to be woven--literally--within them. It's interesting to note how the women have traditionally used the various materials that they have the easiest access to in the creation of the carpets. Originally, (we're talking 16th century) this included goat, sheep and camel wool. Much later, beginning in the 1980's, the materials used by the Aït Khebbach women changed as the tribe evolved. Now, the weavers utilize used clothing which they gather from various "Western collection points," artfully upcycling worn-out knitwear by cutting them into long strips and weaving them on the loom. As a result, the formerly flat, dense weaves have become much more "textural," since each carpet is now made up of different materials of varying textures.