Rachid Koraïchi

20 January 1947

Algeria

Rachid Koraïchi, a prolific visual artist with a career spanning more than fifty years, was born in Algeria, in the Aurès region, a centre of resistance during the War of Independence. Trained at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Algiers, the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs in Paris and the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, he also graduated from the Institut d’Urbanisme in Paris. Koraïchi works internationally, designing significant projects in Algeria, Egypt, Spain, Tunisia, the United States and Dagestan. He engages only the finest craftspeople maintaining ancient traditions to realise pieces for his site-specific installations. Among his many projects and distinctions, he won the V&A’s prestigious Jameel Prize in 2011 and was included in both the 47th and 49th Venice Biennales. His work is collected by reputable museums, including the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, the State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Haus der Kunst, Munich, London’s British Museum and MoMA, New York. He has also designed and realised a biosphere project in the Algerian desert (Dar Al Qamar); painstakingly restored a large palace in the Medina of Tunis (Dar General Ben Turkia); created and financed the reinterment of Algerian Resistance fighters in Château d’Amboise (Jardin d’Orient); amongst others.

Source: Aga Khan Award for Architecture