KHEDIJA JEDDI ESSAIED

Born in 1976 in Tunis, where she currently lives.

Khedija Essaied Jeddi is a self-taught contemporary artist, recognized for her pastel drawings that incorporate embroidery, sewing, and the fragmentation of old newspaper archives.

After studying International Business in Tunis and earning a diploma in Knowledge Management in Sophia Antipolis, she worked in the packaging industry until 2007, when she moved to Kuwait and then the United Arab Emirates. In Abu Dhabi, she learned traditional embroidery techniques from a master and developed a passion for weaving, especially with old linen, which appears in nearly all her works. Observant and sensitive to the world around her, Khedija Essaied Jeddi approaches her art with “a child’s eye on an adult world.”

Through encounters, readings, and events in both public and private life, she develops her reflections on issues close to her heart: migration, personal narrative, and social inequalities. Her work presents a series of meticulous miniature scenes that prompt the viewer to shift their perspective.

The text accompanying most of her artworks is an integral part of the work, exploring intimacy and juxtaposing a childlike aesthetic with adult words that are harsh and serious. The artist animates this colorful scenography, blending playfulness with gravity.



︎ @khedijaj