For centuries, this square has been the nerve center of Marrakesh and the symbol of the city. It has hardly changed. I made this photograph from the terrace of a restaurant overlooking the square, and converted it to black and white to stress the timelessness of the scene. Thousands of shoppers visit its markets, stalls, wagons, and shops by day. Outdoor restaurants are set up each evening, jugglers, dancers, and snake charmers perform, and the square echoes round the clock to the sound of North African music and throbbing drums. By reducing all of this to a black and white abstraction, such details are not seen, but left to the imagination. Note the flow of body language that carries us through the entire right center portion of the image – from bottom to top. It begins with the woman at center bottom carrying a large bundle on her back. Behind her, near the middle of the image, a man appears to be reaching for something. Behind him, a lone figure carries a tote bag. In the upper right hand portion of the image a motorbike drives away from the square towards distant carriages and individual strollers. The black and white rendering removes all detail, making these figures into abstract symbols of activity, and defining the essence of this square as Marrakesh’s central meeting place.