Abdesslem Ayed

Abdesslem Ayed (b. 1979 in Tunis, Tunisia; lives and works between Gabès and Tunis, Tunisia) trained at the Higher Institute of Fine Arts in Tunis, where he earned a Master’s degree in Fine Arts with a specialization in sculpture. He also worked as a restorer of antique sculptures at the National Bardo Museum. His background in restoration deeply informs a multidisciplinary practice centered on embroidery, weaving, sculpture, and mixed media assemblage.

 

Drawing from artisanal textile traditions across North Africa, Ayed incorporates old carpets, fabrics, and found materials into works that explore memory, repair, fragmentation, and cultural transmission. Through stitching, layering, and reconstruction, he transforms acts of mending into visual metaphors for identity and historical continuity. His practice bridges contemporary art and traditional craft techniques, using embroidery as a conceptual language tied to collective memory and the invisible social and historical connections embedded within materials. Weaving, embroidery, and assemblage become both formal and symbolic gestures through which the artist reconnects with personal and collective histories while reimagining inherited forms beyond conventional aesthetic judgments.

 

Since 2008, Ayed has regularly exhibited in Tunisia and internationally. His recent presentations include participation in the Dak’Art Biennale 2018 and the Cape Town Art Fair 2022.