Atlas Lion - Metallic structure, concrete and earth, (2,2 x 6 x 1 m) / 2021
ATLAS LION
The sculptural ensemble presents two lions in confrontation, their forms mirroring each other in a composition reminiscent of heraldic emblems where opposing forces find balance through symmetry. These are the lions of the Atlas, creatures that have vanished from the physical landscape yet persist within the national imagination as symbols of strength, sovereignty, and lost wilderness. El Gotaibi gives material form to this tension between absence and memory, between what has been lost and what endures in collective consciousness. The distinction between the two figures resides not in their sculptural form but in their substance: one lion is cast in concrete, representing society, and the other shaped from earth to form nature. A tension of existence. This material opposition becomes the work's central argument, a dialogue enacted through the language of construction itself. Concrete carries the ideology of technical progress, the relentless drive toward efficiency and standardization that characterizes contemporary urban development. It represents the constructed world of society, with its institutions and abstract systems of organization. Earth speaks to the living world of growth, decay, and regeneration, a material that has shaped human shelter since the earliest communities. Through these two lions, El Gotaibi constructs a meditation on divergent paths, asking whether reconciliation between these forces remains possible or whether they are destined to eternal confrontation.
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ATLAS LION
The sculptural ensemble presents two lions in confrontation, their forms mirroring each other in a composition reminiscent of heraldic emblems where opposing forces find balance through symmetry. These are the lions of the Atlas, creatures that have vanished from the physical landscape yet persist within the national imagination as symbols of strength, sovereignty, and lost wilderness. El Gotaibi gives material form to this tension between absence and memory, between what has been lost and what endures in collective consciousness. The distinction between the two figures resides not in their sculptural form but in their substance: one lion is cast in concrete, representing society, and the other shaped from earth to form nature. A tension of existence. This material opposition becomes the work's central argument, a dialogue enacted through the language of construction itself. Concrete carries the ideology of technical progress, the relentless drive toward efficiency and standardization that characterizes contemporary urban development. It represents the constructed world of society, with its institutions and abstract systems of organization. Earth speaks to the living world of growth, decay, and regeneration, a material that has shaped human shelter since the earliest communities. Through these two lions, El Gotaibi constructs a meditation on divergent paths, asking whether reconciliation between these forces remains possible or whether they are destined to eternal confrontation.
read more
ATLAS LION
The sculptural ensemble presents two lions in confrontation, their forms mirroring each other in a composition reminiscent of heraldic emblems where opposing forces find balance through symmetry. These are the lions of the Atlas, creatures that have vanished from the physical landscape yet persist within the national imagination as symbols of strength, sovereignty, and lost wilderness. El Gotaibi gives material form to this tension between absence and memory, between what has been lost and what endures in collective consciousness. The distinction between the two figures resides not in their sculptural form but in their substance: one lion is cast in concrete, representing society, and the other shaped from earth to form nature. A tension of existence. This material opposition becomes the work's central argument, a dialogue enacted through the language of construction itself. Concrete carries the ideology of technical progress, the relentless drive toward efficiency and standardization that characterizes contemporary urban development. It represents the constructed world of society, with its institutions and abstract systems of organization. Earth speaks to the living world of growth, decay, and regeneration, a material that has shaped human shelter since the earliest communities. Through these two lions, El Gotaibi constructs a meditation on divergent paths, asking whether reconciliation between these forces remains possible or whether they are destined to eternal confrontation.
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Atlas Lion Sketch, ink and pencil on tissue paper, (25 x 33 cm) / 2021
SOCIETY & NATURE
In the vocabulary of heraldry, facing lions signify guardianship, the protection of territory and values through vigilant opposition. El Gotaibi invokes this symbolic tradition to frame a contemporary confrontation between competing visions of development and identity. The lions stand as sentinels at a threshold, each representing a distinct philosophy of construction, habitation, and relationship to landscape. The concrete lion embodies the stark geometry of modern urbanism, the proud sterility of technical achievement divorced from ecological consideration or cultural particularity. This is the lion of efficiency and profit, of construction methods that prize speed and replicability over craftsmanship and local adaptation. In the postcolonial African context, this figure represents the persistent pressure to demonstrate modernity through material means, to signal progress by adopting the aesthetic and structural languages of industrial development. Yet this adoption often comes at the cost of rupture, a break with indigenous building traditions that carries both practical and symbolic weight. Facing this figure stands the earth lion, warm and permeable, a form shaped through techniques that acknowledge rather than dominate their environment. This lion speaks to the possibility of an architecture reconciled with nature, rooted in landscape rather than imposed upon it. The earth carries fertility where concrete offers barrenness, creativity where the other provides only replication, connection where its counterpart enforces separation.
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SOCIETY & NATURE
In the vocabulary of heraldry, facing lions signify guardianship, the protection of territory and values through vigilant opposition. El Gotaibi invokes this symbolic tradition to frame a contemporary confrontation between competing visions of development and identity. The lions stand as sentinels at a threshold, each representing a distinct philosophy of construction, habitation, and relationship to landscape. The concrete lion embodies the stark geometry of modern urbanism, the proud sterility of technical achievement divorced from ecological consideration or cultural particularity. This is the lion of efficiency and profit, of construction methods that prize speed and replicability over craftsmanship and local adaptation. In the postcolonial African context, this figure represents the persistent pressure to demonstrate modernity through material means, to signal progress by adopting the aesthetic and structural languages of industrial development. Yet this adoption often comes at the cost of rupture, a break with indigenous building traditions that carries both practical and symbolic weight. Facing this figure stands the earth lion, warm and permeable, a form shaped through techniques that acknowledge rather than dominate their environment. This lion speaks to the possibility of an architecture reconciled with nature, rooted in landscape rather than imposed upon it. The earth carries fertility where concrete offers barrenness, creativity where the other provides only replication, connection where its counterpart enforces separation.
read more
SOCIETY & NATURE
In the vocabulary of heraldry, facing lions signify guardianship, the protection of territory and values through vigilant opposition. El Gotaibi invokes this symbolic tradition to frame a contemporary confrontation between competing visions of development and identity. The lions stand as sentinels at a threshold, each representing a distinct philosophy of construction, habitation, and relationship to landscape. The concrete lion embodies the stark geometry of modern urbanism, the proud sterility of technical achievement divorced from ecological consideration or cultural particularity. This is the lion of efficiency and profit, of construction methods that prize speed and replicability over craftsmanship and local adaptation. In the postcolonial African context, this figure represents the persistent pressure to demonstrate modernity through material means, to signal progress by adopting the aesthetic and structural languages of industrial development. Yet this adoption often comes at the cost of rupture, a break with indigenous building traditions that carries both practical and symbolic weight. Facing this figure stands the earth lion, warm and permeable, a form shaped through techniques that acknowledge rather than dominate their environment. This lion speaks to the possibility of an architecture reconciled with nature, rooted in landscape rather than imposed upon it. The earth carries fertility where concrete offers barrenness, creativity where the other provides only replication, connection where its counterpart enforces separation.
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Atlas Lion - Exhibition View VISIT MCC Gallery, Marrakech / 2022
IDENTITY
The Atlas lion exists now only as trace, as story, as collective memory of a creature that once inhabited the mountain ranges of North Africa. Its disappearance marks a broader pattern of loss, the gradual erosion of wild spaces and indigenous species in the face of human expansion and environmental degradation. By choosing this extinct animal as his subject, El Gotaibi transforms the sculptural ensemble into an act of witnessing, a memorial that holds space for what can no longer be physically present. Yet the work resists simple nostalgia or elegiac mourning. Instead, it asks what forms of presence remain available when the original has vanished, what kinds of memory endure when direct experience becomes impossible. The two lions, though materially distinct, share identical form, suggesting that the question is not whether to remember but how to carry memory forward into an uncertain future. Amy El Gotaibi
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IDENTITY
The Atlas lion exists now only as trace, as story, as collective memory of a creature that once inhabited the mountain ranges of North Africa. Its disappearance marks a broader pattern of loss, the gradual erosion of wild spaces and indigenous species in the face of human expansion and environmental degradation. By choosing this extinct animal as his subject, El Gotaibi transforms the sculptural ensemble into an act of witnessing, a memorial that holds space for what can no longer be physically present. Yet the work resists simple nostalgia or elegiac mourning. Instead, it asks what forms of presence remain available when the original has vanished, what kinds of memory endure when direct experience becomes impossible. The two lions, though materially distinct, share identical form, suggesting that the question is not whether to remember but how to carry memory forward into an uncertain future. Amy El Gotaibi
read more
IDENTITY
The Atlas lion exists now only as trace, as story, as collective memory of a creature that once inhabited the mountain ranges of North Africa. Its disappearance marks a broader pattern of loss, the gradual erosion of wild spaces and indigenous species in the face of human expansion and environmental degradation. By choosing this extinct animal as his subject, El Gotaibi transforms the sculptural ensemble into an act of witnessing, a memorial that holds space for what can no longer be physically present. Yet the work resists simple nostalgia or elegiac mourning. Instead, it asks what forms of presence remain available when the original has vanished, what kinds of memory endure when direct experience becomes impossible. The two lions, though materially distinct, share identical form, suggesting that the question is not whether to remember but how to carry memory forward into an uncertain future. Amy El Gotaibi
read more
Atlas Lion - Metallic structure, concrete and earth, (240 x 600 x 90 cm) / 2021
