During this workshop, we start with a brief introduction to the world of Moroccan henna art. Do you know, for instance, why henna is used and the meanings of certain patterns? What technique is used to apply the patterns? During the workshop, you will learn this and also get hands-on with the technique. Using a cone filled with henna paste, you will create a pattern on a small canvas in five steps. This needs to dry, so by the end of the day, you can pick up your henna artwork and take it home. With a bit of luck, you might also get a decoration on your hand from our professional henna artist.

Moroccan henna art is a craft traditionally passed down from mother to daughter or spread organically within women’s communities. The craft is characterized by a specific technique, namely applying henna with a cone. Geometric patterns are often applied to hands and feet. The henna binds to the keratin in the skin, making the orange-brown decorations visible for 1 to 2 weeks.

Henna is best known as a ceremonial part of a Moroccan wedding, where the bride’s hands and feet are decorated with henna. But henna is much more than a beautiful skin decoration. It encompasses a whole world of symbolism, meaningful rituals, and empowering traditions.

At the age of four, Fatima Oulad Thami experienced her first henna ritual during a visit to her grandmother in Morocco. A neighbor girl drew a herringbone pattern on her hands and feet with a stick and henna paste. This experience would change her life forever. Every summer, the henna ritual became a fixed tradition of the holiday. At the age of fourteen, she began to self-teach to become a neqacha. Now she has 30 years of experience and is a sought-after henna artist both nationally and internationally. With Moroccan henna art as her expertise and her passion as her drive, she has achieved much under the name Hand of Fatima. She has an online learning platform, a webshop with henna supplies, the Henna Academy for group lessons, commissioned work, a master-apprentice trajectory via the Cultural Participation Fund, and much more. Fatima is now not only a neqacha but also a speaker, teacher, artist, and socially engaged creator.

NB: Fatima also teaches a masterclass during the festival.