Muhammad Ben Ali Ribati
# Muhammad Ben Ali Ribati

Muhammad Ben Ali ar-Ribati (Arabic: محمد بن علي الرباطي; 1861–1939) was one of the earliest Moroccan painters. As his surname suggests, Ribati was born in Rabat in 1861. However, he was based in Tangier, where he had access to materials for watercolors. Though he had no formal training, he was supported by European artists.

In 1903, Ribati became a cook for the Irish painter Sir John Lavery, who first settled in Morocco in 1890. Lavery noticed that Ribati was a gifted watercolor painter.

## Exhibitions

Ribati's first exhibition was at the Goupil Gallery in London in 1916. His second exhibition was in Marseille, France, in 1919, and his third was at the Mamounia hotel in Marrakesh in 1922.

## Style

Ribati preferred watercolor on paper as a medium over oil on canvas. He frequently painted Tangier, its qasba, and its inhabitants. He painted simplified human figures, and often painted a large, colorful scene with several people. He always signed his paintings in Arabic.

