Tunisian tattoo artist revives Berber designs for new generation

Seiada Issaoui, a Tunisian Berber woman with inks marks on her face, sits with Manel Mahdouani, a tattoo artist who is reviving traditional Berber designs, at her home outside the central city of Kairouan, Tunisia. Photo: Reuters

Tunisian tattoo artist Manel Mahdouani is reviving traditional Berber designs that had long been considered unfashionable but are now gaining in popularity among a hip new generation.

Few Tunisians now speak the Berber languages more commonly found in Algeria and Morocco, and outward signs of Berber cultural identity are often relegated to motifs found on the handicrafts mass-produced for tourists.