The Academy of Traditional Arts, created on October 31, 2012 under the high instructions of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist him, is one of the components of Casablanca’s Hassan II Mosque Foundation, which is a platform of excellence dedicated to high-level training in Traditional Arts, based on the acquisition of scientific knowledge and allowing the development of virtuosities.
This orientation has made the Academy of Traditional Arts a unique institution of its kind at the national level, rarely matched internationally and has given it the following characteristics:
- Academic space fulfilling the artistic and scientific conditions that allow master craftsmen to pass on to the new generations, with fidelity and probity, the trades and skills they inherited from their ancestors. It is also a place where the manual dexterity of trades and scientific, technological and historical knowledge coexist.
- A center of scientific research in the field of traditional arts through the exploration and archiving of the artistic specificities of traditional art and its preservation against any alteration.
- Establishment training new generations of craftsmen who have the qualities required to innovate in the field without undermining the profound characteristics of Moroccan handicraft.
- Reference institution in the field of research and expertise and a driving force for communication with sectors active in the traditional arts, in terms of production, authorization, research and promotion of products.
- Through the training that is provided by it, the Academy of Traditional Arts is expected to contribute to the enrichment and enhancement of the national crafts sector, which will make it a vital link in the network of national and international actors concerned with traditional arts and related activities. Its role will cross the boundaries of the economic to expand to the cultural, knowing that it will contribute to safeguarding, preserving and promoting the artistic and cultural aspects of our Moroccan identity.
MISSIONS OF THE ACADEMY
The Academy's mission is primarily to ensure:- The training of master craftsmen and senior executives, through the acquisition of professional and practical expertise in various craft trades including trades related to the fields of the arts of traditional building, wood, metals, leather and weaving, as well as in the field of calligraphy;
- Continuing education of craftsmen in the aforementioned fields;
- Technical assistance and consultancy in terms of quality for craft busniesses.
- Conducting research in the field of traditional arts to promote creativity and innovation;
- Conducting expertise and research works at the request of public or private entities;
- Preserving trades and traditional expertise;
- Developing relations of cooperation, partnership and exchange of expertise with any public or private organization, national or foreign, in the field of traditional arts.