Moroccan visual artist Hicham Benohoud has won the prestigious PhotoBook of the Year award at Paris Photo 2025, the world's largest photography fair, for his work "The Classroom," published by Loose Joints. This award, often compared to the Oscars of photography books, was presented during the 28th edition of the event.
"The Classroom" features a captivating series of black and white photographs taken by Benohoud between 1994 and 2002, during the period when he was teaching art at a high school in Marrakech. His students served as models, posing in surreal and meticulously orchestrated scenes created by the artist, who sought to break the monotony of daily classes. "I took photos because I was bored in class... I wanted to keep myself busy," he told RFI, adding that the artistic depth of his work only revealed itself later.
The 57-year-old Benohoud is a graduate of the École Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs in Strasbourg. For the creation of his book, he left the editing and layout to the publisher, providing more than 2,000 negatives. He dedicated this award to Christian Caujolle, who had organized the first international exhibition of "The Classroom" in 2001.
This award recognizes not only the artistic quality of the work but also its profound reflection on Moroccan society. "Through these photos, I speak about Morocco as I see it," Benohoud explained. In "The Classroom," he critiques the educational system's inability to offer genuine freedom to young people, using his art as a vehicle for social commentary and cultural expression.
