The powerful works of this Moroccan photographer are inspired by his need for a “complex way of expression,” and informed by an engineer’s understanding of and fascination with light. In one photo-series, “Amarg,” dramatic high-contrast landscapes of Morocco’s hinterland depict a solitary figure draped in a long djeballa robe. In another series, blurred figures are juxtaposed against a city backdrop. In another, people stare out past ocean horizons.  “I'd say that my current photography style is a post-experimental one,” says Zakaria. “I've experimented a lot in terms of light work, as well as composition.  Suggestion occupies an important place in my artwork, there's always a study that questions if the minimalist compositions I work with, are enough to create a whole story.”

Deserted, desolate landscapes are a recurring theme in Zakaria’s work, inhabited by a single, lone form. It’s usually Morocco in frame, though the terrain’s dunes, mountains and tundra take on an otherworldly appearance. A telecommunications engineer, Zakaria is currently working on projects that adhere to the theme of “silence.” He says he has always wished he could paint, but that his “fingers would rather trigger the shutter of a camera.”