“The smell, the color…”, why Montpellier native Naoual El Galhi got into the art of temporary tattooing

Naoual El Ghali, an artist with magic fingers and her cone. Oriental art

Un modèle simple de tatouage au henné sur les mains. Oriental art

Sur les bras, c'est aussi joli. Oriental art

Tatouage discret à la cheville, avec une touche d'élégance. Oriental art

Naoual El Ghali, qui réalise des tatouages éphémères au henné, sera présente au Festival Arabesques, au Domaine d’O, ce week-end et le week-end suivant. L’occasion de découvrir son univers et de vous laisser tenter par un tatouage éphémère.

While the lifespan of the henna tattoos created by Naoual El Ghali is greater than that of a butterfly, they are also ephemeral: around ten days compared to 2 to 3 days for the lepidoptera. To discover this young artist with magic fingers, who works from home but can also come to your home, provided it is in Hérault, go for a walk at the Domaine d'O this weekend, to travel to the Orient, without the need for suitcases, boat tickets or plane.

Then let yourself be guided to the “Medina”, recreated as part of the Arabesques Festival, to discover his work and, why not, entrust him with your hands or any other part of your body to get the tattoo of your choice. And if you don't have any specific ideas, let her guide you, her intuition is right and her talent real.

Henna: a family and cultural heritage

As far back as she can remember, the art of henna has always been passed down from mother to daughter in the country of her ancestors, Morocco, where Naoual goes every summer to reunite with the family back home. “Henna is in my culture. My mother taught me it for the Eid celebrations. We decorated our hands by making arabesques, lines, floral patterns… The smell of henna and its color have remained anchored in me ever since, and always remind me of my family and my origins“, confides the young thirty-something, who was born and raised in Montpellier.

Far from imagining that henna would become an entire part of her life, she committed herself after her Baccalaureate to higher education in business. That's when she became friends with another student from her BTS, Mounia, who taught her how to do henna tattoos with a syringe. Stung, she spent more time drawing the tattoos she imagined in her notebook than listening to her teachers. The henna bug would never leave her.

100% natural products

From the syringe she moves on to the cone, a more interesting tool for making even more precise patterns. Her talent is starting to become known, word of mouth is doing the rest. “I had demand, I had to do something with it.” It would take her more than ten years to set up her small business, “Oriental art”, located in the Ovalie district. She has done so for two years, to her great joy, and today she encourages other young women to go into business for themselves.

Whether for special occasions or to treat yourself, Naoual creates the temporary tattoo that suits you by instinct or to order. It is from henna powder, 100% natural, that she brings from Morocco, that she makes the paste that serves as a base for the temporary tattoo. However, she keeps her personal recipes to herself. Following demand and trends, she does the same with dark blue jagua powder (exotic fruit), or even redder henna powder from India.

Her greatest joy? “The temporary henna tattoo touches everyone, not only people of oriental culture, but also all ages. It is a real joy to be able to share this“, she concludes. And because sharing is in her DNA, she will offer training courses for all those who want to learn.

At the Arabesques Festival, on September 14 and 15, then on September 21 and 22, from 2 p.m. to midnight. She will also be present on September 20, from 6 p.m. to midnight.
Learn more: www.orientalart.fr

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