Meriem Bennani
Biography
Born in 1988 in Rabat, Morocco
Lives and works in New York, USA
Education
2012 BFA, The Cooper Union, New York, USA
2011 MFA in Animation, Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, FR
Solo and duo exhibitions
2025
Life on the Caps Trilogy, NG Partners, Essaouira, MA
Sole Crushing, Lafayette Anticipations, Paris, FR
2024
For My Best Family, Fondazione Prada, Milan, IT
Meriem Bennani, Rasha Omar “Above A Cloud”, City SALTS, Basel, CH
2023
Life on the caps, Kamel Lazaar Foundation, B7L9 Art Station, La Marsa, TN
2022
Cursed Objects, Clearing, Brussels, BE
2 Lizards, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, USA
Windy, a co-commission by High Line Art and Audemars Piguet Contemporary, The High Line, New York, USA
Meriem Bennani: Life on the CAPS, The Power Plant, Toronto, CA
Life on the CAPS, Nottingham Contemporary, Nottingham, UK
Life on the CAPS Triology, The Renaissance Society at University of Chicago, Chicago, USA
2021
2 Lizards, The Nassauischer Kunstverein Wiesbaden, Wiesbaden, DE
Guided Tour of a Spill, François Ghebaly, Los Angeles, USA
A presentation of works from MISSION TEENS : French School in Morocco, Clearing, Brussels, BE
2020
Party on the CAPS, Julia Stoschek Collection, Berlin, DE
2019
Party on the CAPS, Clearing, New York, USA
Mission Teens, Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, FR
2018
Siham Hafida, Stanley Picker Gallery, London, UK
2017
Siham Hafida, The Kitchen, New York, USA
Ghariba / Stranger, Art Dubai, Dubai, UAE
2016
FLY, MoMA PS1, New York, USA
2015
Gradual Kingdom, SIGNAL, Brooklyn, USA
Fardaous Funjab, Stream Gallery, New York, USA
2014
Paste, SIGNAL, Brooklyn, USA
Selected group exhibitions
2026
New Humans: Memories of the Future, New Museum, New York, USA (Upcoming)
Here: Pride and Belonging in African Art, Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Washington, USA (Upcoming)
2025
Paradigm Shift: New Dimensions in Moving Image, 180 Studios, London, UK
Rave into the Future, Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, USA
Not All Travellers Walk Roads – Of Humanity as Practice, 36th São Paulo Biennial, São Paulo, BR
It Smells Like Girl, Jeffrey Deitch, Los Angeles, USA
Mythologies for a Spiritually Void Time, OFFLINE, New York, USA
Fin de Party, FRAC Corsica, FR
Standard Deviation, Rialto6, Lisbon, PT
Accicidents, Stavanger Seccesion, Stavanger, NO
Aita, FRAC Nouvelle-Aquitaine MÉCA, Bordeaux, FR
IN THE DARKNESS BIND THEM, Huset for Kunst og Design, Holstebro, DK
2024
MODA - Moroccan Fashion Statements, Centraal Museum, Utrecht, NL
Echelle Humaine, Lafayette Anticipations, Paris, FR
AraboFuturs, Arts et science-fiction, L’Institut du monde arabe, Paris, FR
Don’t worry I won’t forget you, FormaHQ, London, UK
2023
Nonmemory, Hauser & Wirth, Los Angeles, USA
No Angles, Wilhelm Hallen, Berlin, DE
Ridykes’ Cavern of Fine Inverted Wines and Deviant Videos, Nottingham Contemporary, Nottingham, UK
My Oma, Kunstinstituut Melly, Rotterdam, NL
A Mind Made of Silk, Clearing, Brussels, BE
INFILTRÉES – 5 manières d’habiter le monde, Reiffers Art Initiatives, Paris, FR
Maiden Voyage, Clearing, New York, USA
Watch and Chill 3.0: Streaming Suspense, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul, KR
Antéfutur, CAPC, Bordeaux, FR
State of Flux, Silverlens, New York, USA
2022
Outlaw, Sydney Modern Project, Sydney, AU
Barbe à Papa, CAPC musée d’art contemporain de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, FR
OUT OF SPACE: DUSSELDORF VARIATION, Julia Stoschek Collection, Düsseldorf, DE
One hundred eighty-six billion steps to the sun, Clearing, New York, USA
M+ Mediatheque Pulling Focus programme, M+, HK
Once Upon a Time..., FRAC, Reims, FR
Meriem Bennani, Kahlil Joseph, Karrabing Film Collective – Eye Art & Film Prize, The Eye, Amsterdam, NL
3rd Geneva Biennale—Sculpture Garden, Geneva, CH
WORLDBUILDING, curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist, Julia Stoschek Collection, Düsseldorf, DE
in/stasis, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, USA
Video at Large – Intimacy, Red Brick Art Museum, Beijing, CN
Role Play, curated by Melissa Harris, Fondazione Prada, Milan, IT
2021
Ridykes’ Cavern of Fine Gay Wine and Videos: Hauser & Werk Bitch: Don’t Be Mad At Us!, curated by Nicole
Eisenman and A.L. Steiner, Hauser and Wirth, New York, USA
OFTEN VARY NEVER CHANGE, Clearing, New York, USA
The view from there, Sadie Coles HQ, London, UK
The Machine is us - Munch Triennial, Munch Museum, Oslo, NO
LAX, public commission, Los Angeles, USA
Beyond What We See: Once Upon A Time, Once Upon A Future, Les Abattoirs, Toulouse, FR
2020
Prelude: Melancholy of the Future, Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens, Deurle, BE
100 Drawings from Now, The Drawing Center, New York, USA
THE SECRET LIFE OF LOBSTERS, Clearing, Knokke-Heist, BE
LIFE STILL, Clearing, New York, USA
A Love Letter to a Nightmare, Petzel Gallery, New York, USA
DIS presents: What Do People Do All Day?, Kunsthal Charlottenborg, Copenhagen, DK
NO SPACE JUST A PLACE, Daelim Museum, Seoul, KR
2019
DOG DAYS, Clearing, New York, USA
Whitney Biennial, curated by Rujeko Hockley and Jane Panetta, New York, USA
Biennale de l’Image en Mouvement, OGR, Turin, IT
Peel, François Ghebaly, Los Angeles, USA
2018
Biennale de l’Image en Mouvement, Centre d’Art Contemporain, Geneva, CH
FLY, curated by Neïl Beloufa, Fondation d’entreprise Ricard, Paris, FR
Siham & Hafida, Biennale de Rennes, Rennes, FR
1+1, MAXXI National Museum of XXI Arts Rome, IT
LOW FORM Water Pressure, Jaou Tunis, Tunis, TN
The Lulennial II: A Low-Hanging Fruit, Lulu, Mexico City, MX
Eye to Eye, Arsenal Contemporary, New York, USA
2017
Ghariba/Stranger, Art Dubai, UAE
Immigrancy, Samsøñ Gallery, Boston, USA
Sticky Fingers, Arsenal Contemporary, New York, USA
alt-facts, Postmasters Gallery, New York, USA
Commercial Break, Public Art Fund, New York, USA
2016
Flying House, Shanghai Biennale, Shanghai, CN
Reality Bytes, Frank F. Yang Art & Education Foundation, Shenzhen, CN
We Dance, We Smoke, We Kiss, Flax Fahrenheit, Los Angeles, USA
2015
Unorthodox, The Jewish Museum, New York, USA
ARA-B- LESS ?, Nour Festival at Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
Surface Support, SIGNAL, Brooklyn, USA
Kick in the Door, MANA Contemporary, Jersey City, USA
2014
In Light, SIGNAL, Art Basel Miami Beach, USA
Performances
2019
Avatar Idol, Fondation Cartier, Paris, FR
2018
Park Night, Serpentine Gallery, London, UK
Residencies, panels and screenings
2025
Bouchra, New York Film Festival, New York, USA (screening)
Bouchra, TIFF, Toronta, CA (screening)
Life on the CAPS, Porto/Post/Doc Festival, Porto, PT (screening)
Guided Tour of a Spill, Flaherty Seminar at Firehouse Cinema DCTV, New York, USA (screening)
Life on the CAPS, Fondazione Merz, Turin, IT (screening)
Ghariba, mumok Cinema, Vienna, AT (screening)
Party on the CAPS, The Balcony, The Hague, NL (screening)
2024
2 Lizards, etc. galerie, Prague, CZ (screening)
Guided Tour of a Spill, Soft Centre, Melbourne, AU (screening)
Life on the CAPS, MAO Museum of Oriental Art, Turin, IT (screening)
Life on the CAPS, 2 Lizards, MUCEM / Festival Art Explora, Marseille, FR (screening)
Ghariba, MUCEM / Festival Art Explora, Marseille, FR (screening)
Cursed Objects, CATCH 75 at The Invisible Dog Art Center, New York, USA (screening)
Artist Talk, New Inc’s DEMO2024 at WSA, 161 Water Street, New York, USA (lecture)
2 Lizards, Medūza, Vilnius, LT (screening)
Life on the CAPS, Arabengers, Paris, FR (screening)
Mission Teens, Drawing Cabinet, Los Angeles, USA (screening)
Life on the CAPS, Atlas Cinema Programme, London, UK (screening)
Artist Talk, Yale School of Art, Graphic Design, New Haven, USA (lecture)
Artist Talk, Harvard Department of Art, Film & Visual Studies, Cambridge, USA (lecture)
2 Lizards, «Inside the Meta», Marseille, FR (screening)
Artist Talk, Department of Digital Arts and Experimental Media, University of Washington, Seattle, USA (lecture)
Party on the CAPS, Criterion Channel x Prismatic Ground, Online (screening)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, ShaSha x Metrograph, New York, USA (screening)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, Ghariba, 2 Lizards, ShaSha Online Library, Online (screening)
2023
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, Additional Space, Basel, CH (screening)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, Twin Cities Arab Film Festival, Minneapolis, USA (festival)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, Non-Memory Exhibition, Hauser & Wirth, London, UK (screening)
Guided Tour of a Spill, Bogiaisso, Chioggia, IT (screening)
Life on the CAPS (chapter), PYLON LAB, Online (screening)
Party on the CAPS, Oxy Arts (Occidental College), Los Angeles, USA (screening)
Party on the CAPS, Stichting Pop Up Cinema, Theater de Nieuwe Vorst, Tilburg, NL (screening)
Siham & Hafida, Party on the CAPS, City Gallery Wellington Te Whare Toi, Wellington, NZ (screening)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, Sydney Modern, Sydney, AU (screening)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, Prismatic Ground Festival, New York, USA (festival)
Party on the CAPS, Noncitizen and e-flux, New York, US (festival)
Artist Talk, HORST Festival, Vilvoorde, BE (festival/event)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, 3rd Arab Women’s Film Festival, Rio de Janeiro, Brasília and São Paulo, BR (festival)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, Berwick Film and Media Arts Festival, Berwick, UK (festival)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, Toronto Arab Film & Images Festival, Toronto, CA (screening)
Party on the CAPS, Swedish National Museum, Stockholm, SE (screening)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy x2, M+, Hong Kong, HK (screening)
2022
Party on the CAPS, Batalha Centro de Cinema, Porto, PT (screening)
2 Lizards, New York City Girls Club, New York, USA (screening/lecture)
Life on the CAPS Trilogy, Singapore International Film Festival, Singapore, SG (festival)
Mission Teens, Cambridge University, Cambridge, UK (lecture)
GTOS, Reference Point, London, UK (screening)
Life on the CAPS, Lincoln Center / New York Film Festival, New York, USA (screening)
Life on the CAPS, 2 Lizards, Toronto International Film Festival, Toronto, CA (screening)
2 Lizards, Geneva Bienal, MAMCO Geneva, Geneva, CH (screening)
Guided Tour of a Spill, Videocittà, Rome, IT (screening)
Party on the CAPS, GTOS, 2 Lizards, The Cinematheque, Vancouver, CA (screening)
Party on the CAPS, Films by Female Artists from MENA, Vilnius, LT (screening)
2 Lizards, GTOS, Manifesto, Paris, FR (screening)
2 Lizards, Royal College of Art Collaboration, Vienna, AT (screening)
Life on the CAPS, Tate Screening, Tate, London, UK (screening)
Artist Talk, School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), Chicago, USA (artist talk/screening)
Conversation with Sadie Barnette, The Kitchen / Bomb Magazine (online), USA (lecture)
Ghariba, Anthology Film Archives, New York, USA (screening)
Fly, Kadist Screening, Espace Odeon Columbia, Paris, FR (screening)
2021
In Between Days: Video from the Guggenheim Collection, Guggenheim Museum, New York, USA
The Contenders, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA
2 Lizards, Prague Short Film Festival, Prague, CZ
Party on the CAPS, Light Art Space, Berlin, DE
New selection of films and videos on aashara, ashkal alwan, Beirut, LB
2020
Party on the CAPS, Sci-Fi Sessions, MCA Chicago, Chicago, USA
2 Lizards, KADIST, San Jose, USA
Party on the CAPS, Rhizome, New York, USA
Party on the CAPS, MCA Chicago, USA
Parsons School of Design | The New School, Video Archive Visiting Artist Lecture, New York, USA
Tate Modern Cinema, London, UK
2019
RAW QUEENS: Meriem Bennani and Fatima Mazmouz, The Mosaic Rooms, London, UK
Party on the CAPS, Centre Pompidou, Paris, FR
CalArts, Visiting Artist Talk, Valencia, USA
2018
Film Retrospective, DAMA, Turin, IT
FLY (Single Channel), Jaou, Tunis, TN
Léviathan, E-Flux, New York, USA
2017
Commercial Break: Artist Panel, Public Art Fund, The New School, New York, USA
I Heard You Laughing, Galerie Gregor Staiger, Zurich, CH
I Heard You Laughing, 221A, Vancouver, CA
I Heard You Laughing, KADIST, Paris, FR
2016
Boston University, Visiting Artist Talk, USA
Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Visiting Artist Talk, USA
FLY (Single Channel), KADIST, San Francsisco, USA
2015
ESKFF Residency, MANA Contemporary, Jersey City, USA
Humain trop humain [Journée Thématique], Palais de Tokyo, Paris, FR
Render Series, MoMA PS1 Printshop, Queens, USA
Selected awards
2025
BOSS Award for Outstanding Achievement, Art Basel Awards, Miami Beach, USA
Medalist Art Basel Awards, Basel, CH
2019
Eye Art & Film Prize, Amsterdam, NL
Publications
FOR MY BEST FAMILY, Fondazione Prada, 2024
Meriem Bennani: Life on the Caps, Renaissance Society, 2023
Other Travel, with Hayden Dunham, 2013
Collections
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, USA
Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA
Guggenheim Museum, New York, USA
The Vega Foundation, Toronto, CA
Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, AU
Kistefos Museum, Jevnaker, NO
Julia Stoschek Collection, Düsseldorf, DE
Hartwig Art Foundation, Amsterdam, NL
Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, FR
FRAC Champagne-Ardenne, Reims, FR
FRAC île-de-france, Paris, FR
Kadist Foundation, Paris, FR
Sigg Art Foundation, Le Castellet, FR
Fondazione Prada, Milan, IT
The Kraus Family Foundation, New York, USA
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, AU
National Museum of Qatar, QA