ZOOM IN WITH MOHAMED SOUIDID
A creative reimagining moroccan culture through design and image
Mohamed Souidid is a Moroccan photographer, creative director and designer from Oulad Teïma whose practice brings together fashion, photography, storytelling and Moroccan culture. After starting photography in 2015, he turned it into his profession in 2021 and has since collaborated with artists, brands and creatives across different disciplines.
Rather than treating the product, image and story as separate elements, Souidid approaches each project as a complete creative world. From transforming sneakers into babouches to developing the photography, styling and casting around his designs, his process explores how Moroccan cultural references can continue evolving through contemporary creative expression.
A practice built across disciplines
Souidid began photography in 2015 and made it his profession in 2021. Since then, his creative practice has expanded across photography, creative direction and design.
Working with artists, brands and creatives from different disciplines has allowed him to develop projects where fashion, photography, storytelling and Moroccan culture coexist within one complete vision.
Moving Moroccan culture ahead
For Souidid, moving Moroccan culture ahead means respecting where it comes from while continuously finding new ways to express it.
He draws from Morocco’s visual identity, including its architecture, craftsmanship, colours, textures and traditions. His intention, however, is not to recreate the past. Instead, he wants to reinterpret those references in ways that feel fresh and can speak to a new generation.
Part of that process involves placing Moroccan culture in unexpected contexts and showing that it can continue evolving without losing its authenticity.
Seeing the ordinary differently in Oulad Teïma
Growing up in Oulad Teïma shaped the way Souidid observes the world around him.
Despite being a small city, he finds inspiration in its streets, people, everyday life and the simplicity of its environment. Growing up surrounded by these details taught him to recognise beauty in ordinary things.
Those memories continue to enter the projects he creates today. Although he has developed his own creative path, Oulad Teïma remains part of the perspective through which he approaches his work.
Building a universe around the product
For Souidid, creating the object is only one part of developing a project.
Photography, styling, casting, film and art direction give the product its wider meaning and emotion. His intention is for every project to exist within its own universe, where each detail has a purpose and contributes to the same idea.
When those elements work together, the audience encounters more than an object. The different creative disciplines combine to create an experience around the original idea.
Choosing collaborators through connection
Collaboration plays an important role throughout Souidid’s process, but he does not choose collaborators based solely on their experience or numbers.
Connection comes first. Sharing the same energy, respecting each other’s ideas and genuinely enjoying the act of creating together are enough for him to see the potential for collaboration.
He is also interested in giving opportunities to new faces, particularly models and emerging creatives, because he believes everyone deserves an opportunity to be seen.
Bringing sneakers and babouches together
The Babouch project represented Souidid’s first step into footwear design.
Rather than designing an entirely new shoe, he chose to bring together two forms that audiences would not necessarily expect to encounter within the same object: the modern sneaker and the traditional Moroccan babouch.
The contrast was part of the intention. Souidid wanted the project to generate questions and conversations while encouraging people to look at Moroccan craftsmanship from another perspective.
When the project went viral, he saw the response as evidence that people were open to encountering and celebrating culture through new forms.
Experimentation and the people behind the work
Souidid’s finished projects are preceded by considerable experimentation. Ideas change, details evolve and sometimes the process requires starting again completely.
Collaboration is also embedded in this experimentation. Abdelouahed played an important role in bringing the Babouch project to life, while Mohamed helped create the jackets.
Recognising those contributions is important to Souidid. His approach is grounded in the idea that creative work becomes stronger when people build it together, which is why giving credit to everyone involved remains an important part of his process.
Following the ideas that feel different
For creatives interested in reinterpreting Moroccan culture through design, Souidid encourages them not to be afraid of their own ideas.
Concepts can initially feel unusual or overly ambitious, but he sees those ideas as potentially the most interesting ones to pursue. His approach is to remain curious, experiment, accept mistakes and develop an individual path rather than following existing trends.
Ultimately, the work that carries the most meaning for him is the work that remains true to the person creating it.
Photo 1 @whiskeybeldi
Photo 2 @its.medd