Saudi Arabia is participating in Bienalsur, the world’s first travelling contemporary art biennale, news welcomed by many, including Pope Francis, who was reportedly briefed on the event by its director, Aníbal Jozami. Works by three Saudi artists, Ayman Zedani, Faisal Samra, and Fatima Al-Banawi, are part of the biennale and will be exhibited in over 100 locations across the globe from June to October 2019.

This month saw perhaps the most significant accomplishment of Al-Ghamdi’s career to date. The artist was chosen to inaugurate Saudi Arabia’s pavilion at the 2019 edition of the Venice Biennale —the art world’s largest public event and oldest contemporary art show — through an immersive solo exhibition entitled “After Illusion.”
Al-Ghamdi was jointly selected to represent the Kingdom by the recently developed Saudi Ministry of Culture and the Misk Art Institute, a homegrown arts foundation that aims to strengthen artistic activity within the Kingdom.  “To be honest, when I used to read about the Venice Biennale and its unique concept, I felt so far away from that world — it was like a dream,” Al Ghamdi tells Arab News. “In recent years, I’ve worked really hard and always hoped to achieve more through each work I would present. So when I received the call from the Misk Art Institute to participate at the biennale, it was like a dream I never thought I’d dream. I was elated but simultaneously felt a great deal of responsibility, as I am not representing (just) myself, but my country and all its artists.”  
Through her debut participation at the biennale, which is open to the public until November 24, Al-Ghamdi joins a canon of female artists putting on solo exhibitions and taking the lead in representing their countries to the world, including Larissa Sansour for Denmark, Laure Prouvost for France, Cathy Wilkes for Great Britain, Nujoom Al-Ghanem for the UAE and Naiza Khan for Pakistan.

Saudi Arabian artist Zahrah Al Ghamdi spends weeks assembling site-specific works in natural materials such as sand, rocks and leather. The Jeddah-based artist is part of an all-female cast who focus on memory, nostalgia, and the tensions between Saudi traditions and globalisation in their work. An A-lister among regional collectors, Al Ghamdi also headlines in prestigious venues such as the Jameel Arts Centre and Alserkal Avenue in Dubai.
In preparation for her  Venice Biennale  presentation at the Sale d’Armi, a 15th-century weapons depot, Al Ghamdi spent months cutting, sewing, shredding, boiling, drying and burning local leather into 52,000 abstract pieces. They reference random organic forms, Aseeri ornaments and local architecture of Al-Baha, her birth village in the southwest of the country.

Visual arts For 2019 Shubbak has commissioned a number of mobile installations for different locations across London. Aicha El Beloui is a Casablanca-based illustrator, graphic designer, and creative director who regularly works with communities to discover a neighbourhood and to filter her observations into maps and illustrations. The history and psychogeography of Moroccan immigration in London will be the focus of her work for Shubbak; drawing from the material gathered in North Kensington and the British Library’s archives, El Beloui will create one of her distinctive maps, which will be available in paper formats, digitally and as an installation, travelling to different sites across the city. In partnership with the Bagri Foundation.
Bricklab, the designers of the first Saudi pavilion at Venice Architecture Biennale create a new pop-up sculpture especially for Shubbak. 22 brightly coloured units equalling in number the 22 states of the Arab League are arranged in different constellations to offer new viewpoints of geographies, nations and the power to imagine other realities. No unit can stand on its own, but has to be grafted onto others. Geographical Child’s Play conjures up poignant and surprising alignments and dependencies. Established in Jeddah in 2015 Bricklab quickly established itself as one of the most dynamic current design practices in Saudi Arabia.
 
Shubbak  is the UK’s premier festival of contemporary Arab culture, presenting outstanding Arab artists to audiences in London and across England. Shubbak’s programme includes UK premieres and new commissions from over 150 artists based in the Arab region, in Europe and in the UK, with both cutting-edge and celebrated names, through a mix of visual arts, film, music, theatre, dance, literature and debates. Led by Eckhard Thiemann, artistic director, and Daniel Gorman, executive director, Shubbak 2019 is the 5th edition of this biennial festival. Shubbak 2019 principal partners are Arts Council England, A. M. Qattan Foundation, Bagri Foundation and British Council. Shubbak is a registered charity number 1150374.

Another such partnership sees the work of Aya Haidar on display this year. The Lebanese-British artist, was born in the US, lived in Saudi Arabia until she was six, before relocating to the UK. Speaking about her upbringing, she reveals, “It’s such a big mix, it’s something that I wanted to be able to place my own narrative on.”
 
“All my work uses objects I’ve reappropriated. It’s important because there are stories that are inherent in these objects  One of the main aspects of Aya’s work focuses on used items.  “All my work uses objects I’ve reappropriated. It’s important because there are stories that are inherent in these objects  she continues. Her work documents the effects of war, and the changes which have taken place in Lebanon over the past 50 years and further in the country’s past. 

Athr Gallery is a contemporary art space that, for the past decade, has provided a link between contemporary artists and the Saudi public. Founded by Hamza Serafi and Mohammed Hafiz in 2009, Athr Gallery has played a major role in building the modern art scene in the Kingdom, and in doing so, has provided a steady creative platform for emerging and established local and international artists. Across its multi-level showrooms, Athr Gallery also offers guests a visual arts bookshop, a rooftop terrace, and an array of food outlets and coffee shops. In addition, the gallery is developing a cultural exchange scheme with international artists and curators, as part of its commitment to promote cultural dialogue between Saudi Arabia and the rest of the world.

“There are so many myths in Al Balad,” says Effat Abdullah Fadag, who is curating this year’s 21, 39 Jeddah Arts, the annual visual art festival in the city. The academic and artist, who lives in Jeddah, is exploring the idea of myth in the exhibition, which, as in previous iterations, takes place at Gold Moor Mall and in the old house of Rabat Khunji in Al Balad. The latter area is renowned for its ­intricately carved doors and mashrabiyas, which date back to the 19th and early 20th centuries.
This year’s theme overall is Al Obour, or “crossing” – such as the new crossing into the old, the exterior crossing into the inside and, crucially, different generations crossing paths. Fadag explains that the emphasis on numerous generations came from Princess Jawaher bint Majed bin Abdulaziz, the patron of the event. “I gathered artists from different generations – pioneers, the upcoming generation, established artists – and added, of course, international artists.”

Ghada Al-Rabea
Ghada Al-Rabea hails from Medina and has made her mark as a visual artist who uses technical skills and humor in her works. Perhaps best known for repurposing candy wrappers in her collages, and poking a bit of fun at some of the best-known works of Western art, Ghada has become one of the most prominent artists from the region. While some of her works have resonated with different audiences and for various reasons, Ghada’s main thematics are actually, and according to the Athr Gallery that represents the artist, “representations that capture the details of Saudi daily life show a love of her country and strength of spirit.” So many advances are made on a daily basis when it comes to technology, commerce and other innovative sectors but one specific slice of society is one to watch if you really want to see where a country is headed: the arts. Creative minds are of the most avant-garde and their thinking often leads the way for the rest of society. So if these beautifully creative minds are anything to go by, then the future of the entire region is looking real bright.

The Ithra Art Prize was launched in 2017 by Ithra in partnership with Art Dubai. The aim of the prize is to support and promote emerging Saudi contemporary artists on a truly global platform. All Saudi and Saudi-based artists and collectives were invited to submit proposals via an annual open call, with the prize winner receiving up to $100,000 to realize their new artwork, which will be first shown at Art Dubai before moving to Ithra as part of the Center’s permanent collection. The inaugural winner, Sharjah-based conceptual artist Ayman Zedani’s commission, Meem, was exhibited at Art Dubai last year.

DUBAI: A selection of work from the contemporary Saudi Arabian art fair
Born in Jeddah in 1993, Basham Felemban she brings a deep knowledge of and affection for Islamic art to her work, but also told Arab News in 2015 that she found inspiration all around her. “I think it’s about being open to learning about everything,” she said. “Inspiration is made of small bits that you collect every day. Once you stop seeking knowledge, you stop getting inspiration. 

The Saudi pavilion, commissioned by the Misk Art Institute makes its debut as one of the 65 national pavilions of the 2018 Architecture Biennale in the Sale d'Armi spaces of the Arsenale, with a scene-stealing installation created by architects  Abdulrahman Gazzaz and Turki Gazzaz from the Bricklab  architecture studio in Jeddah. They have crafted curved elements made from a translucent material, resin - a by-product of the petrochemical industry - mixed with desert sand, which channels the country's future beyond oil, marking the various sections of the exhibition and accompanying visitors.
Spaces in Between , curated by the  female curators Jawaher Al-Sudairy , directors of the Nahda Center for Research and senior program manager at the Harvard Kennedy School, and  Dr. Sumayah Al-Solaiman , dean of the College of Design at Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University describes the current evolution of the country that is entering a new era of change, powered by Prince Mohammed bin Salman's  Vision 2030 project . 

JEDDAH: Athr gallery brought to Jeddah for the first time a unique art exhibition at the Serafi Mega Mall.
The show titled, “Through the spectrum,” displayed the artworks of six international artists including two Saudis, Ahmad Matir and Nasser Al-Salem.
Each artwork treated light in a different way, allowing the visitors to indulge in light through several variables and configurations. These photovoltaic compositions transcended concrete barriers, allowing them to influence the visitors.