Introducing – Fes i: Time to Pause. The rich culture of Fes is reflected in its architecture and woven into the rhythm of daily life. This is especially evident in the calls to prayer, which punctuate the day from before sunrise until after sunset.
About Time to Pause:
One morning, I set my alarm for 5am – about half an hour before dawn – and sat in the darkness, waiting for the first call. Shortly before daybreak, a single soft, gentle voice echoed across the medina, singing the morning prayer. Minutes later, a second and third voice joined in, gradually blending with the dawn chorus of Fes’ birds, marking the beginning of a new day.
This moment inspired a poem I wrote in English and later translated into Darija, the Moroccan Arabic dialect spoken in Fes. The English version has a rhyming rhythm, while the Arabic translation reads as a narrative.
Fes i: Time to Pause, began as a continuation of my Red Box series – square compositions of hand-embroidered text drawn from lived experience. I first wrote the narrative in English and, with the help of a friend in Fes, translated it into Darija, ensuring the phrasing felt natural, authentic, and true to the original sentiment.
The work is part of a series shaped by my residency in Fes. Words, local dialect, and hand embroidery are central to my practice. Stitched in Darija and inspired by daily life on the retreat, the piece celebrates everyday rituals and quiet moments of reflection. Hand-embroidered in vintage red Sylko thread, it also pays homage to one of Morocco’s national colours.
Size: Hand embroidered panel measures 21 x 21cm approximately.
Poem: Time to Pause
Time to Pause:
Beneath the moon and countless stars is silence, all is still….. in tranquil sleep the city rests, in peaceful calm until …
The moonlight fades across the sky, before the rising sun…. Sweet birdsong joins a single voice: a new day has begun …
And this voice joins with others throughout the waking day ….. Five times they come together: a call to worship and to pray …
From mosques arise melodic tones that swell and fill the air…. And echo from the city walls, each alleyway and square …
And asks for those both near and far, from shop or market stall…. Or craftsmen, trades of every kind to answer to the call …
To pause, down tools, assemble, join with others, kneel and stand… In spaces small and humble to majestic, tiled and grand…
Prostrate, bow, pray with neighbours, fellow worshipers; before….Returning to their daily work, their livelihood, their chore …
This guide and rhythm through the day, this pace to life is met; From before the sun has risen until after it has set …
Original words composed by Catherine Hill.
Prism Textiles Exhibiiton
Three pieces from this series will be exhibited at Prism Textiles this April:
The Art Pavilion, Mile End Park, London E3 4QY
17–26 April | Open 11:00–18:00 daily | FREE ENTRY
