RIYADH: As the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia celebrates its 92nd National Day, its creative scene is flourishing like never before. A glimpse into the not-so-distant past would show film sets interrupted by police inquiries demanding that productions be shut down. Fast forward to today, and local filmmakers are backed by unstinting support from the General Entertainment Authority,
Philip Tinari to Curate Inaugural Saudi Arabian Biennial
Philip Tinari, director and curator of Beijing’s UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, has been named as the curator of the inaugural Ad-Diriyah Biennale, to take place in 2021. The event is Saudi Arabia’s first international contemporary art biennial, and is expected to be divided into six sections featuring a total of more than seventy Saudi and international artists.
Established by Saudi Arabia’s newly formed Ministry of Culture and organized by its subsidiear Thunaiyat Ad-Diriyah Foundation, which is charged with establishing two recurring art festivals. The second of these which will occur alternately with the Ad-Diriyah Biennale, is the Islamic Biennale, debuting in 2022 and focusing on Islamic art.
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Further details on the new Saudi biennial, which will take place at the ancestral palace of Ad Diriyah, have been announced.
Philip Tinari, the director of the UCCA Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing, will serve as curator. The team will also include Wejdan Reda, who runs the online cultural platform Sahaba. The Ad Diriyah Biennale will take place in 2021, although the exact dates have not been confirmed, and will feature more than 70 artists. It is an initiative by the Saudi Ministry of Culture, and will alternate annually between the Ad Diriyah Biennale, devoted to contemporary art, and the Islamic Biennale, devoted to Islamic art.
Curator announced for largest contemporary art exhibition in Saudi Arabia arabnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from arabnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.