The third edition of Desert X AlUla , the high-profile contemporary art exhibition held in the vast northwest region of Saudi Arabia, is due to launch next year (9 February-23 March), putting the spotlight again on the Middle Eastern state’s turbocharged cultural development.
The exhibition, which includes site-specific works, is part of the AlUla Arts Festival (9 February-2 March). Saudi Arabia, which has a concerning record on human rights, continues to transform its image, recently winning the bid for World Expo 2030.
The Desert X biennial initially launched in the Coachella Valley in California in 2017. The first AlUla edition launched in 2020; this iteration is organised by the Beirut-born independent curator Maya El Khalil and the Brazilian documentary director Marcello Dantas (Raneem Farsi and Neville Wakefield will return as artistic directors). Desert X AlUla has been organised in collaboration with the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU), the Saudi governmental body led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Dana Awartani's Where The Dwellers Lay, Desert X AlUla 2022
Photo: Lance Gerber, courtesy of the Royal Commission for AlUla
The second edition in 2022 included works by Shezad Dawood, Dana Awartani and Stephanie Deumer. The influx of international press at the event and a notable curatorial contingent reflected how the notoriously conservative country is opening up internationally and diversifying its economy in line with the government’s Vision 2030 initiative.
The upcoming edition of Desert X AlUla will be situated at locations within the Wadi AlFann desert, Harrat Uwayrid and AlManshiyah Railway Station. “We're working at three different sites. There is a main site in the desert. But we're also working on the top of the mountain, the Harrat, which has a fantastic overview of the entire valley. We have works there too,” Dantas says.
The theme of the 2024 edition is “In the Presence of Absence” (an artist list is yet to be announced). Dantas adds that “we tried to balance between international artists, Saudi artists, and regional artists”. He adds, “I have visited the previous Desert X [editions]; I was totally impressed with the location and the possibilities of dealing with art on such a scale. That fascinates me. I've always been focused on getting out of the white cube [galleries] and trying to bring art to other realms. And this is quite a daring [project].”
El Khalil explains the curatorial framework, saying: “We approached from the perspective of: how can we learn from that landscape? What is hidden? How can you really engage with forces that are beyond our perspective, beyond in terms of time and space, but also in terms of history.”
Serge Attukwei Clottey's Gold Falls, Desert X AlUla 2022
Photo: Lance Gerber, courtesy of the Royal Commission for AlUla
Dantas adds: “I would say that the first thing that caught me… was the location itself, which is a desert in height, a desert with a relief, a desert with alcoves… we're giving artists a kind of space that you normally never get, and you have to deal with materials that will endure in that climate. It’s the scale, the grammar, the language: how do you interact with the space? This is an experimental practice in its essence.”
How Desert X engages with audiences is key. El Khalil says that there will be a conscious effort to engage with the local community. “A number of artists are asking the community to participate in the making of the works… and there is an effort to really reach out to the rest of people in Saudi, at a student level [for instance].”
And where is the Saudi art scene—primarily driven by government funding and policy—at this point in time? “From my perspective, the energy that I see now, and the creative opportunities that are made available for these artists is quite unique […] There's a lot of positive hope; it’s quite commendable [as] younger generation feel that they're part of it,” says El Khalil, adding that “time is needed to develop a solid infrastructure.”
• Desert X AlUla, Saudi Arabia, 9 February – 23 March 2024
• AlUla Arts Festival, Saudi Arabia, 9 February – 2 March 2024