Capturing the colour and chaos of Morocco’s coastline

The Travel Diary — Once a sleepy seaside town, Tangier is now in the midst of a major cultural shift, transforming into a dazzling sensory hub of neon lights and designer logos. In a new collaboration, photographers Kamila K Stanley and Simon Vidal join forces to capture its changing face.

We decided to visit Tangier because we’d never crossed the Mediterranean sea — a border easily passed one way, but seldom from the other.

The city stands perched at the extreme northern point of North Africa, on a cliff where the continent ends. The waves that come crashing at its feet have come all the way from the Americas, but also from the Strait of Gibraltar, and the Middle East. If you stretch out your fingertips, you can almost touch Spain. The beaches glimmer on the horizon, teasing you from 12 kilometres away.

When we first arrived in Tangier, we found ourselves plunged into the lively chaos of a national identity shift. After many sleepy decades as a fading North-African port, today Tangier is awakening. We found it rattling with a fascinating electricity; one that has been shaking Morocco since the Arab spring.

Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 11 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 10

The Morrocan King, Mohammed VI, has launched ambitious plans to transform the neglected coastline into a dazzling, economic hub at the gateway to Europe. An enormous port is under construction, and new roads are being built. Palaces, football stadiums and shopping malls are springing up overnight.

We tried to photograph this mix of Arabic culture, designer logos, horse-riders and neon lights. It’s a place where tradition and modernity intertwine, trashy and timelessness collide. Tangier exists trapped between all these glistening aspirations and hard realities, emblematic of the current rebirth of Morocco. This photography project – titled Tangerine Tales – tries to capture it before it disappears.

Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 2 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 24 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 34 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 7 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 9 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 26 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 12 Simon VIDAL - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 6 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 3 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 1 Kamila K STANLEY - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 8 Simon VIDAL - Tangerine Tales 2018 - 1

See more of Kamila Stanley and Simon Vidal’s work on their official websites.

Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.


Ad

Latest on Huck

Two young women making silly facial expressions, one with a grey coat and the other in a black coat, in front of a white building.
Culture

Tender, carefree portraits of young Ukrainians before the war

Diary of a Stolen Youth — On the day that a temporary ceasefire is announced, a new series from photographer Nastya Platinova looks back at Kyiv’s bubbling youth culture before Russia’s February 2022 full-scale invasion. It presents a visual window for young people into a possible future, as well as the past.

Written by: Hannah Bentley

Four people posing for a portrait, wearing black outfits against a bright red background. The text "Hush presents Analogue Appreciation" is overlaid in yellow and green lettering.
Music

Analogue Appreciation: 47SOUL

Dualism — In an ever more digital, online world, we ask our favourite artists about their most cherished pieces of physical culture. Today, it’s Palestinian shamstep pioneers 47SOUL.

Written by: 47SOUL

A punk rock band performing on stage, with a female lead singer belting into a microphone. Behind them, a colourful mural with graffiti-style text.
Music

Meet the hair-raised radicals of Berlin’s noise punk scene

Powertool — In his new zine, George Nebieridze captures moments of loud rage and quiet intimacy of the German capital’s bands, while exploring the intersections between music, community and anti-establishment politics.

Written by: Miss Rosen

Group of people dancing at a live music performance, with a large "Spaces Beats" sign in the background.
Music

Amid tensions in Eastern Europe, young Latvians are reviving their country’s folk rhythms

Spaces Between the Beats — The Baltic nation’s ancient melodies have long been a symbol of resistance, but as Russia’s war with Ukraine rages on, new generations of singers and dancers are taking them to the mainstream.

Written by: Jack Styler

A person's face surrounded by colourful flowers. The flowers include orange, red, and yellow dahlias, as well as smaller yellow blooms. The person's expression is serious.
Music

Uwade: “I was determined to transcend popular opinion”

What Made Me — In this series, we ask artists and rebels about the about the forces and experiences that shaped who they are. Today, it’s Nigerian-born, South Carolina-raised indie-soul singer Uwade.

Written by: Uwade

Taxidermy alligator with a small monkey sitting on its head, displayed on a wooden shelf with other items.
Culture

Inside the obscured, closeted habitats of Britain’s exotic pets

“I have a few animals...” — For his new series, photographer Jonty Clark went behind closed doors to meet rare animal owners, finding ethical grey areas and close bonds.

Written by: Hannah Bentley

Huck is supported by our readers, subscribers and Club Huck members. It is also made possible by sponsorship from:

Signup to our newsletter

Sign up to our newsletter to informed with the cutting edge of sport, music and counterculture, featuring personal takes on the state of media and pop culture from Emma Garland, former Digital Editor of Huck, exclusive interviews, recommendations and more.

Please wait...

Accessibility Settings

Text

Applies the Open Dyslexic font, designed to improve readability for individuals with dyslexia.

Applies a more readable font throughout the website, improving readability.

Underlines links throughout the website, making them easier to distinguish.

Adjusts the font size for improved readability.

Visuals

Reduces animations and disables autoplaying videos across the website, reducing distractions and improving focus.

Reduces the colour saturation throughout the website to create a more soothing visual experience.

Increases the contrast of elements on the website, making text and interface elements easier to distinguish.