Explore Al Baha through Zahra Alghamdi’s earthy installations

Welcome to Al-Monitor Riyadh.

Visitors can connect with the soil, stone, and architecture of Al Baha, a city in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia, through the works of Saudi artist Zahra AlGhamdi, now on display at Athr Gallery in Riyadh. In the kingdom’s eastern city of Dhahran, a comprehensive group exhibition at the Ithra Museum — also known as The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture — explores collective and personal ideas of home. Back in Riyadh, visitors can head to Al-Masmak Palace to explore an exhibition tracing the evolution of Saudi Arabia’s national emblem from 1932 to today.

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Happy reading,

Rebecca

P.S. Have feedback or tips on Riyadh's culture scene? Send them my way at contactus@al-monitor.com.

1. Leading the week: 'Between Memory and Matter'

Zahrah AlGhamdi. “Shards of Quiet Strength.” 2025. Site-specific installation made of layered leather and clay. (Courtesy of the artist and ATHR)

A solo exhibition titled “Between Memory and Matter” in Riyadh explores the work of Saudi artist Zahra AlGhamdi, known for her exquisite installations inspired by the earth and architectural heritage of her hometown of Al Baha. On view at ATHR Gallery in Riyadh are sculptural installations by the artist made from natural materials from her hometown — including mud, rock and natural fibers — that evoke the rich history and heritage of the Hejaz. Her work begins with earth and stones, from which edifices then seem to develop organically from the mountainous terrain of the region. The natural materials she uses go beyond their physical forms; they hold memories, history and emotions. Through her works, mud, rock and other organic matter become ways to tell stories that link the past, present and future. 

What distinguishes this exhibition from Alghamdi’s earlier work is her depiction of the human figure — through drawings and sculptures, she explores grief, resilience and hope. Within them, she offers new landscapes in which the natural and human worlds collide to forge emotional landscapes that encourage human empathy and compassion. 

A unique facet of AlGhamdi’s art is its ability to resist a single interpretation. Instead, the works serve as blank canvases where the spectator can project their own experiences and emotions while connecting with Saudi heritage and the nation’s rich, natural landscape. What is pivotal to AlGhamdi is how the materials she uses can serve as a vessel to carry memory, transforming the personal into a shared human experience. 

Dates: Until Nov. 20

Location: ATHR Gallery, Diryah, JAX District, Riyadh

Find more information here.

2. Word on the street: Albasali Seafood Restaurant

Albasali seafood restaurant. (Courtesy of Albasali)

If you’re in Jeddah and searching for an authentic eatery, let Albasali Seafood Restaurant whisk you through the coral-stone walls of Al-Balad, the city’s UNESCO-listed historic quarter dating back to the 6th century. This charming, rustic restaurant is where local Jedawis (as they are often called) have dined for generations. The restaurant, which was founded in 1949 by a family of fishermen, has evolved over the years to become a local and international attraction serving local seafood specialties like fried najel (a type of fish from the Red Sea), grilled Hareed, butterfly shrimp, fried shrimp and sayadiah brown rice. Still, even after all of these years and the massive and rapid development across Saudi Arabia, Albasali has maintained its humble and cozy ambiance as one of the oldest restaurants in Jeddah. 

Address: Al-Balad, Jeddah

Find more information here.

3. Riyadh diary

Nawaf Al Dohan. Two Memories (left) 2025 and works by Skna Hassan. Invisible Connection (right). 2025 displayed in Echoes of the Familiar exhibition, Courtesy of Ithra: King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture

• ‘Echoes of the Familiar’

Home is a deeply personal and universal theme. In the new group show “Echoes of the Familiar”, 35 works by 28 Saudi artists, including 17 new commissions, explore memory, nostalgia, and longstanding rituals that have shaped Saudi domestic life.

Curated by Gaida AlMogren, the exhibition reflects Ithra’s commitment to supporting Saudi art and documenting the kingdom’s cultural and social transformations, highlighting home as a symbolic space where memory and identity intersect, Farah Abushullaih, head of the Ithra Museum, told Al-Monitor.

The show is conceived as a journey through the intimate architecture of a traditional Saudi home, with contemporary halls of Ithra transformed into evocative spaces: The Building, The Living Room, The Kitchen, The Hallway of Memories, The Bedroom, and The People of the Home. Each setting reimagines familiar domestic environments, connecting the personal and collective, where memory and identity converge.

“The featured works reinterpret the details of everyday home life through contemporary visual language, revealing them as fundamental elements of collective consciousness and shared human experience,” Abushullaih said. The exhibition reveals a Saudi sense of self rooted in tradition yet shaped by rapid change, showing how domestic life and family shape both individual and community identity.

Dates: Until Nov. 30

Location: Ithra - The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, Dhahran

Find more information here.

•'Two Swords and a Palm: Archive of the Saudi Emblem'

Inside Riyadh’s historic Al-Masmak Palace Museum — a 14th-century fortress — this exhibition charts the evolution of the Saudi national emblem: two crossed Arab swords with a palm tree at the center. Through rare archival documents and interactive displays, it traces the emblem’s development from 1932 to today and highlights its role in shaping Saudi national identity. The exhibition reflects how this powerful symbol has evolved alongside the nation’s own transformation.

Dates: Until Nov. 21

Location: Al-Masmak Palace Museum, Riyadh

Find more information here.

•'Sound of Harmony: A Journey through Ancient Chinese Music'

Whisk back in time and across the world with this exhibition exploring ancient Chinese music. Staged by the Saudi Museums Commission in collaboration with the National Museum of China, “Sound of Harmony: A Journey through Ancient Chinese Music” is part of the Saudi-China Cultural Year 2025. The exhibition is organized into five sections: “In Tune with Heaven and Earth,” “Echoes from Stone and Bronze,” “Mutual Melodies Between Regions and Strangers,” “A Tribute to Chinese Musical Heritage,” and “Mountains and Waters, Wind in the Forest.” Visitors can explore over 100 rare musical artifacts, including bronze bells, bone flutes, traditional string instruments such as the guqin, and the 12 lu pipes. The show traces the development of Chinese music over thousands of years, highlighting its connection to rituals, culture, and identity in China.

Dates: Until Dec. 1

Location: Saudi National Museum, Riyadh

Find more information here.

4. Book of the week:  AlUla: Wonder of Arabia

Dive into the ancient wonders of Saudi Arabia’s AlUla region with this hardcover book, published in 2024 by Skira. Authors Abdulrahman Alsuhaibani (associate professor of archaeology at King Saud University and executive director of archaeology, conservation, and collections at the Royal Commission for AlUla) and Laila Nehme (archaeologist, epigraphist, and specialist in Near Eastern archaeology) guide readers through AlUla’s rich history as an ancient crossroads of continents. Through in-depth essays and captivating photography, the book highlights the region’s role as a meeting point for civilizations and a key stop on the incense trade route connecting Asia, Africa, and Europe. Once known as Dedan and ruled by ancient North Arabian kingdoms — including the Nabataeans, founders of Hegra (a sibling city of Petra) and later the Romans — AlUla’s ancient culture and history continues to inspire today.

5. View from Riyadh

Rashed AlSubaie. "My Sister’s Kids" (عيال أختي) displayed in Echoes of the Familiar exhibition at Ithra. (Courtesy of Ithra: King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture)

Saudi photographer and visual artist Rashed AlSubaie beautifully captures the visual language of contemporary Saudi life by documenting everyday moments. In "My Sister’s Kids," he explores life inside the home through spontaneously shot images on his phone of his sister’s children. Revived in 2020 during the pandemic, the series incorporates the children’s handwritten notes and drawings, creating a heartfelt portrait of play, imagination, and family connection in ordinary moments.

AlSubaie has exhibited locally and internationally, including at Al Hosh Gallery (Doha, 2025), Al Riwaq Art Space (Manama, 2024), Athr Gallery (Riyadh, 2023), Madinah Arts Center (2023), and Misk Art Institute (Riyadh, 2022–2023).

6. By the numbers

• Saudi Arabia is preparing to shift its $925 billion sovereign wealth fund away from a focus on real estate gigaprojects that have dominated its development goals for the last decade, according to Reuters.
• During the ninth edition of the Future Investment Initiative conference in Riyadh last week, Saudi Arabia touted its aims of becoming an AI powerhouse. Its chief investment vehicle, Saudi AI company Humain, announced during the FII conference a $3 billion deal with private equity giant Blackstone to build data centers in the kingdom.
• Humain plans to build up to 6 gigawatts in data center capability across the country by 2034.