Effects of Light

The light in Morocco is so pure and bright that it takes on almost the intensity of an object.


On Sunday afternoon, we went to Cafe France and then wandered around for a little while.
We went into the souks.
Here the two shopkeepers appear much less important than the stripes on the building.


The sunlight falling through the slatted roof superimposes another design upon something already patterned.
What Byzantine layers of complexity.


The teleboutique in the Spice Market is probably getting less use lately because everyone, except us, has a cell phone.


Light glitters and flows almost like a river over the winding lanes of the souk.


In Kennaria a man bicycles under a tunnel and emerges into the light.

Complicated Patterns

This is a light in my study.
The metal light cover hides the awful naked bulb and throws patterns onto the wall.
The best light like this was a lantern in a castle south of Ouazzazatte -it had a candle inside rather than a light bulb.



This woven bamboo acts as a partial sunshade on the roof of Sherazade a small hotel on rue riad Zitoune.
The little tower you see (lower right) is the mosque next door.



As you walk down from the roof terrace there you see the wicker fence
and the reflection of the wrought iron railings.



These are old doors for sale near the Musee de Marrakech.
You have to fix them on the outside of the door entry.
Some of these doors come from south of the Sahara.



Back to my study with all its crazy patterns.
The curved bit is the shower floor with bejhmat tiles and the black and white swirly tiles are new, made by enterprising American friends here who have started their own tile company.



This is a plaster decoration over the sink - and another metal light cover which doesn't match the one at the other end of the room.
The metal light covers cost about $4 US each............
When we first bought them, with their artistically rusty-on-purpose patina, Sayeed, who was painting the house, urged us to let him paint them too.
He said the rust would be bad for our health.