Saudi-Palestinian artist Dana Awartani heads to Venice

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Dana Awartani, a Palestinian-Saudi artist known for her works that reimagine Middle Eastern historical forms and traditions, has been selected to represent Saudi Arabia at the Venice Biennale Arte 2026. The Misk Art Institute in Riyadh hosts a pioneering exhibition of leading Gulf artists from the 20th century, while across the capital, Hafez Gallery presents a solo show by Syrian painter Houssam Ballan. Also, the new fine-dining restaurant Nomas opens its doors, and an exhibition at the Saudi National Museum surveys the kingdom’s legacy through coins.

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Rebecca

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1. Leading the week: Saudi-Palestinian artist Dana Awartani heads to Venice Biennale

Dana Awartani (center), Antonia Carver (right) and Hafsa Alkhudairi (left), 2025. (Courtesy of the Visual Arts Commission)

One of Saudi Arabia’s most significant contemporary artists, Dana Awartani, has been selected to represent the kingdom at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia in 2026, where her work will be shown at the Saudi National Pavilion in the Arsenale.

Awartani’s work is recognized regionally and internationally for its cultural sensitivity and exploration of the spatial constructs, traditional techniques and concepts that influence Middle Eastern culture, past and present. She often draws on Islamic and Arab art-making traditions for her practice, which spans multiple artistic media, including sculpture, painting, performance and installation. Predominant themes in her work include a focus on traditional craftsmanship and the complexities of cultural heritage and preservation, particularly in sites across the Arab world that are under threat.

The pavilion, organized by the Ministry of Culture’s Visual Arts Commission, will be curated by Antonia Carver, director of Art Jameel, alongside Saudi Iraqi curator Hafsa Alkhudairi.

“My practice is rooted in foregrounding Middle Eastern cultural histories through the revival of craft practices and the preservation of the region’s globally-important material heritage; working with my curatorial colleagues, I am thrilled to have the chance to develop a major new work for the Saudi Pavilion, in line with this theme and endeavor, and to be part of ‘In Minor Keys,’” said Awartani in the announcement’s press release.

“Dana’s practice explores cultural heritage and the inherent forces of preservation, recognition, and destruction within — a subject that has perhaps never been more crucial than now,” said Carver in the announcement’s press release.

Dates: May 9 to Nov. 22, 2026

Location: Arsenale, Venice, Italy

Find more information here.

2. Word on the street: Nomas

An interior view of Nomas in Riyadh. (Courtesy of Nomas)

A new fine-dining approach to Saudi cuisine has opened at the Marriott Riyadh Diplomatic Quarter. Called Nomas, this upscale restaurant features interior design showcasing warm hues of earthy brown with accents of green and olive-colored tiled floors and dim-lit lamps presenting a hand-stitched design by talented female artisans in Jeddah. The plates are decorated with designs that reflect the rich diversity of Saudi culture found across its regions. While the interiors are enrapturing, the star is the food, which offers guests a culinary tour of Saudi Arabia. Dishes to try include hail kebiba, ocean sayaadih, hashi steak, najdi lamb shoulder and qursan served with mixed vegetables, among other delicious dishes. The tea service, which showcases another highlight of Saudi heritage, also shouldn't be missed.

Location: Marriott Riyadh Diplomatic Quarter

Find more information here.

3. Riyadh diary

An installation view of “Art Across the Arabian Gulf” at the Misk Art Institute in Riyadh. (Courtesy of Misk Art Institute)

• ‘Art Across the Arabian Gulf’ at Misk Art Institute

The Misk Art Institute, part of the Mohammed bin Salman Foundation, has opened “Art Across the Arabian Gulf,” which showcases more than 150 artworks by 78 pioneering artists from across the GCC. “The exhibition stems from our sense of urgency and understanding our Saudi art history,” said Basma Alshathry, director of the curatorial department and chief curator at Misk Art Institute. “On show are artworks within a specific time frame of research that we focused on, from the 1950s to 1999. We chose that time frame because we went through a lot during this period — many moments of transformation and a lot of change.”

Spanning the region’s modern cultural history, the exhibition explores themes of heritage and development, maritime life, conflict and resilience, abstraction and textual expression, and material experimentation, highlighting how Gulf artists have shaped evolving identities and cross-regional dialogue.

Dates: Until March 31, 2026

Location: Misk Art Institute, Riyadh

Find more information here.

• ‘Golden Palms,’ by Syrian painter Houssam Ballan

The works of Syrian figurative painter Houssam Ballan are the focus of a solo exhibition in Riyadh that explores themes of memory, displacement and the human spirit. Titled “Golden Palms,” the exhibition draws inspiration from the palm garden surrounding Ballan’s studio and from his diverse memories. The palm tree, with its geometric trunk patterns, arched leaves and serrated edges, becomes a form through which memory and the architecture of nature intertwine. In this new body of work, Ballan moves beyond his hyperrealistic portrayals to incorporate imagery influenced by Sufism and the Levantine architecture of his Syrian homeland. The figures in these paintings evoke a meditative dialogue bridging memory, place and light.

Dates: Until Dec. 13

Location: H19, JAX District, Diriyah, Riyadh

Find more information here.

• ‘Minted Narratives: Saudi Arabia’s Legacy in Coins’

This unique exhibition presents a collection of over 200 rare coins, from early Islamic currency to the modern Saudi riyal, to chart the Gulf nation’s ancient and modern history. The coins on show, artfully displayed and curated, illustrate the kingdom’s cultural, political and economic evolution from ancient times to the present.

Dates: Until Dec. 16

Location: National Museum, Riyadh

Find more information here.

4. Book of the week: 'Mud Architecture of Najran, Saudi Arabia'

Author Hisham Mortada explores the southern Saudi city of Najran, where natural landscapes and architectural structures come together to tell stories of the region’s history, cultural memory, identity and connection to nature. Mortada highlights how generations of Najran’s inhabitants have built resilient structures from mud and other natural materials, crafted entirely by hand. Through detailed text and evocative images, the book shows that these buildings are not just shelters but are living reflections of a culture shaped by its environment, tribal heritage and role as a historic trade crossroads. It also offers insights into how mud as a building material can inform more environmentally sensitive architecture today.

5. View from Riyadh

Huda Beydoun’s AlULA Hearts from the series A Disparate Familiar. 2022. (Courtesy of the artist)

Jeddah-based photographer Huda Beydoun’s evocative image of AlUla’s ancient site of Hega is seen through a white veil covered in hearts. The artist, who has made a name for herself through her visual art and fashion photography, took this image “to bridge the familiar (the colorful and soft fabrics inherent in my previous work) with the novel (the sand and stone palette of the rock formations),” she writes in her artist’s statement for the series. “By juxtaposing these two extremes, the contrast becomes more tangible and the viewer is better able to feel the content rather than just see it.” 

The work was displayed in Monaco from August to September 2024 in the exhibition “AlUla: Tapestry of Creativity,” curated by Arts AlUla in collaboration with Experience AlUla.

6. By the numbers

• Saudi Arabia staged its first national pavilion at the Venice Biennale during the Venice International Architecture Exhibition in 2018. The country’s first participation in the Venice Art Biennale was the following year in 2019.
• Saudi artist Manal AlDowayan represented Saudi Arabia during the last Venice Art Biennale in 2024, presenting the exhibition “Shifting Sands: A Battle Song.” At the heart of the installation, inspired by desert roses found in Saudi Arabia, were the authentic expressive voices of over 1,000 Saudi women, collected through various workshops with AlDowayan.