TEXTILES TOUR with GLORIA LOUGHMAN
8 – 22 November 2025
Marrakech, Atlas Mountains, Sahara, Fes, Chefchaouen, Rabat
Landscape, quilt by Gloria Lougman
Travel with textile artist Gloria Loughman and explore the traditional Amazigh (Berber) crafts of Morocco at a grassroots level where women’s cooperative ventures present a range of textile creations melding age-old skills with new innovations.
In Marrakech we visit the exquisite new Yves Saint Laurent Museum featuring his fashion design as well as the Berber Museum that houses the Moroccan textiles and jewellery that inspired his work.
We then venture into the High Atlas Mountains and follow the ancient trade routes across the Tizi’n’Tichka Pass from Marrakech to the Sahara. Weavers of carpets and cloth, embroiderers and basket weavers are found in remote locations where they still employ their skills and maintain their traditional life style.
Next we make our way north to Fes and the blue city of Chefchaouen for a feast of colour and Islamic culture, finishing in the capital city of Rabat.
The tour includes hands-on experiences and demonstrations with local artisans. On the road in the mountains and Sahara we learn some exquisite embroidery techniques, tie knots to make rugs, explore some eco-dyeing using Rose Madder and Pomegranate.
Guest artist Gloria Loughman will share her skills and experience to allow participants to develop their ideas for textile design, drawing inspiration from the sublime landscape and rich cultural environment provided by the art and architecture of Morocco. The tour is not an intensive workshop as there is too much to see and experience in Morocco, but time will be devoted to sharing ideas, discussing colour, pattern, materials and trialling techniques for future development. You will be encouraged to keep a visual diary and create studies and samplers incorporating your ideas.
Facades, quilt by Gloria Loughman
Workshop with Gloria Loughman
Using images and inspiration captured while exploring the colourful landscape and rich textures of Morocco, Gloria will prepare one small project based on a building or façade and will bring the materials necessary for the participants to complete this small project.
MORE ABOUT THE TOUR
Accommodation is provided in the most comfortable traditional guesthouses, where we enjoy the extraordinary delights of Amazigh food and hospitality. You will discover the highlights of Morocco and the indigenous Amazigh culture that evolves and continues largely through the extraordinary textile traditions. We also enjoy music and a complete range of traditional cultural experiences and crafts.
Traveling with a small group of like-minded people and an experienced team of co-hosts the program offers an innovative and creative way to explore a new place that is stimulating, supportive and safe.
ABOUT GLORIA LOUGHMAN
After completing studies in design and colour as part of a Diploma of Art, Gloria began making quilts based on the Australian landscape, many of which won major awards both in Australia, Europe, Japan and the United States.
A trained secondary teacher, Gloria has travelled extensively in Australia and overseas, sharing her knowledge and skills with students, and encouraging them to design their own work. Her commitment to teaching was acknowledged when she received the ‘Rajah Award’ in 2009 for her ‘outstanding contribution to Australian Quilt making’. Gloria has had a number of solo exhibitions in Australia, England, Canada and the United States, and has written four books.
Recently, her landscapes have become more abstract as she has played with pattern and colour. Her building quilts and other facades have developed through her love of architecture and the opportunity to travel and explore, photographing many fascinating buildings. Underlying all her work is a passion for colour and the ongoing challenge to capture light in her work.