Visual artists craft souvenirs for visitors at ART Week Riyadh

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Visitors admire the artworks at the Saudi Cultural Development Fund’s booth during ART Week Riyadh , which commenced on April 6. (Supplied/CDF)
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Visitors admire the artworks at the Saudi Cultural Development Fund’s booth during ART Week Riyadh , which commenced on April 6. (Supplied/CDF)
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Updated 10 April 2025
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Visual artists craft souvenirs for visitors at ART Week Riyadh

  • Organized by the Saudi Visual Arts Commission, the eight-day event is running until April 13 at the JAX District in Diriyah, under the theme At the Edge
  • Cultural Development Fund is a programming partner in the inaugural edition of ART Week Riyadh, and presents an exclusive collection of artworks at its pavilion

RIYADH: The Cultural Development Fund is offering exclusive souvenirs during ART Week Riyadh, designed for visitors in collaboration with Saudi visual artists.

Organized by the Saudi Visual Arts Commission, the eight-day event is running until April 13 at the JAX District in Diriyah, under the theme “At the Edge.”

The fund is a programming partner in the inaugural edition of ART Week Riyadh, and presents an exclusive collection of artworks at its pavilion, created in collaboration with leading figures in the visual arts sector.

Among the standout exhibits are limited-edition souvenirs, designed in partnership with renowned Saudi visual artists Lulwah Al-Homoud and Faisal Al-Kheriji.

The scheme seeks to promote local talent while celebrating unique artistic expression.

The fund’s activities include a workshop titled “Cultural Financing for the Visual Arts Sector,” which highlights available funding opportunities to support businesses throughout the entire value chain of the sector.

The fund’s involvement highlights its steadfast commitment to advancing cultural projects and nurturing creative production across all 16 cultural sectors, including the visual arts.

Nawaf Al-Owain, executive director of marketing and communications at the Cultural Development Fund, highlighted the organization as a pivotal financial force in Saudi Arabia's cultural landscape.

Al-Owain told Arab News: “Our participation in ART Week Riyadh and other major cultural and developmental events is part of the fund’s commitment to aligning its efforts with both the cultural and developmental landscapes.

“These platforms enable us to engage directly with entrepreneurs and companies in the cultural sector, introducing them to the financial and non-financial solutions offered by the Community Arts Development Fund to support the launch and growth of their projects,” Al-Owain added.

The fund’s pavilion serves as a dynamic platform for engaging with entrepreneurs in the visual arts sector, offering in-depth insights into the cultural funding programs provided by the fund and showcasing its solutions that support the growth of creative projects, he said.

Its activities aim to broaden access to sector opportunities, while also aligning with the objectives of the National Culture Strategy to support the development of a sustainable and thriving cultural sector in Saudi Arabia, Al-Owain added.

Through its participation, the fund highlights the opportunities it offers to empower the visual arts sector, and foster a supportive environment for expanding cultural projects, he said.


Riyadh exhibition to trace the origins of Saudi modern art

Updated 07 January 2026
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Riyadh exhibition to trace the origins of Saudi modern art

  • Features painting, sculpture and archival documents
  • Open from Jan. 27-April 11 at Saudi national museum

DUBAI: A new exhibition in Riyadh is focusing on the origins of Saudi Arabia’s modern art scene, examining how a generation of artists helped shape the Kingdom’s visual culture during a period of rapid change.

The “Bedayat: Beginnings of Saudi Art Movement” show reportedly traces the emergence of creative practices in Saudi Arabia from the 1960s to the 1980s, an era that laid the groundwork for today’s art ecosystem.

On view from Jan. 27 until April 11 at the National Museum of Saudi Arabia, it includes works and archival material that document the early years of modern and abstract art in the Kingdom, according to the organizers.

It will examine how artists responded to shifting social, cultural and economic realities, often working with limited infrastructure but a strong sense of purpose and experimentation.

The exhibition is the result of extensive research led by the Visual Arts Commission, which included dozens of site visits and interviews with artists and figures active during the period.

These firsthand accounts have helped to reconstruct a time when formal exhibition spaces were scarce, art education was still developing, and artists relied heavily on personal initiative to build communities and platforms for their work.

Curated by Qaswra Hafez, “Bedayat” will feature painting, sculpture, works on paper and archival documents, many of which will be shown publicly for the first time.

The works will reveal how Saudi artists engaged with international modernist movements while grounding their practice in local heritage, developing visual languages that spoke to both global influences and lived experience.

The exhibition will have three sections, beginning with the foundations of the modern art movement, and followed by a broader look at the artistic concerns of the time.

It will conclude with a focus on four key figures: Mohammed Al-Saleem, Safeya Binzagr, Mounirah Mosly and Abdulhalim Radwi.

A publication, documentary film and public program of talks and workshops will accompany the exhibition, offering further insight into a pivotal chapter of Saudi art history and the artists who helped define it.