Dana Awartani, Orientalism, 2010, PVC taped room, Courtesy of the artist and Athr Gallery
Jeddah’s cultural landscape is burgeoning—as a matter of fact, a new two-month contemporary art event named ‘21,39’, in reference to the city’s latitude and longitude coordinates, will debut from February 4-8.
Organized by the Saudi Art Council, and held under the patronage of HRH Princess Jawaher, President of the Jeddah-based Al Mansouria Foundation, the contemporary art initiative will feature a panel of council members of art and design professionals based in the Kingdom Saudi Arabia that will be tasked with selecting the art works on display. The panel includes interior designer. Nawaf Al Nassar; artist, Sharifa Al Sudairi; BASMOCA founder, Basma Al Sulaiman; Edge of Arabia’s, Abdullah Al Turki; advertising agent, Eissa Bougary; art curator, Raneem Farsi; art collector, Mohammed Afiz; conceptual artist, Hamsa Serafi; art consultant, Hayat Shobokshi; and Tamer Group’s, Faisal Tamer; among others.
The program will present two curated exhibitions featuring works from emerging and established Saudi artists, including Ahmed Mater, Manal Al Dowayan and Saddek Wasil, amongst others, next to special mentoring sessions for young Saudi artists, and panel discussions.
“The inaugural opening event of ‘21, 39’ aims to expand beyond the current borders of the Kingdom’s cultural landscape, developing a platform for dialogue between local artists and the rest of the world,” explained Mohammed Hafiz, Vice-Chairman of the Saudi Art Council.
