Noor Riyadh 2023
Noor Riyadh 2023 / The Bright Side of the Desert Moon
Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC)
Riyadh, with activations throughout 5 main location hubs
November 30 – December 16, 2023
There is nothing like the Noor Riyadh Festival in Saudi Arabia. The curatorial team lead by Jérôme Sans, included Alaa Tarabzouni, Fahad bin Naif and I. We were charged with selecting artists and developing over eighty light-based public artworks and building projections, to be placed in sites across the city. The goal was to flood Riyadh with light. At first, I was skeptical about light-based art. During our initial visit in March 2023, while walking around in the heat, it became clear that no one in their right mind would enjoy public art during the day. Riyadh comes alive at night and instead of merely illuminating public art, it is a brilliant idea to make light integral to the artworks. Ultimately the display of light-based contemporary art invites artists to expand their practices, which distinguishes Noor from any other public art event or light festival on the planet. The artists delivered wonderful work for a truly amazing show in the desert.
We worked in five hubs and three ancillary sites across Riyadh. Concentrating on hubs simplified navigating Noor and provided diverse environments for the artworks. I loved exploring the Wadis (river valleys) at night. It reminded me of playing in the desert as a child in Mexico. The beauty and vibrancy of the Wadi’s inspired us. More importantly, the artists were thrilled to have the opportunity to present their work in the magnificent desert setting. We also worked in Salam Park, an enormous city park packed with families; KAFD, the futuristic financial center; JAX, the heart of the art world in Riyadh and several urban sites including King Fahad National Library.
Noor knows their audience. Few organizations have such a keen understanding of their public in multiple venues across a city. This knowledge demonstrates a commitment to the residents of Riyadh for whom Noor is produced. I love the fact that Noor is produced primarily for the residents of Riyadh. This understanding of distinct audiences assisted the curatorial process.
I had never worked at this scale and number of projects simultaneously. There is really nothing else like it on Earth. It is important to point out, that normally curators are asked to make things smaller. In Riyadh, we were consistently encouraged to think bigger. We had to recalibrate our brains to meet the Saudi standards. The desire for scale and impact are singular characteristics of the festival. No one else does this. I loved the ambition and scale.
I am very fortunate to do what I do. Bringing public art to fruition is a privilege. It is an even greater privilege when I have the chance to make friends and learn something. I am grateful to the many dedicated individuals who worked on Noor. Many of these individuals have become friends who I look forward to working with again. It was a privilege to work with Jérôme and his team. As well as with Alaa, Fahad and the multitude of artists who gave us outstanding works. Upon embarking on this project, an artist shared words of wisdom, “It will be difficult and you will be frustrated at times but, in the end, everything will work out and you will be very proud of your work.” They were right. I am very proud of my work. In addition, this experience changed the way I see the world. Working in the Gulf opened my eyes to the similarities between us, in contrast to the differences the media tends to point out. In addition, Noor impacted my curatorial practice. I will never again think of light as simply a tool to illuminate work at night. From now on, I will be thinking about how to make light integral to the artwork.
Curatorial team:
Jérôme Sans - Lead Curator
Pedro Alonzo
Alaa Tarabzouni
Fahad bin Naif
Curatorial Assistant: Inés Maldonado Cabañas
Artists
Abdullah Alamoudi, Alexandre Farto (Vhils), Alicia Framis, Ange Leccia, Angelika Markul, Arwa Al Neami, Aziz Jamal, Ayman Yossri Daydban, Bianca Bondi, Bruno Ribeiro, Bytwo, Carlos Cruz-Diez, Carsten Höller, Chourouk Hriech, Chris Levine, Christopher Bauder, Claudia Comte, Dana-Fiona Armour, Diana Thater, DRIFT, Dr. Zahrah Alghamdi, Dur Kattan, Edra Soto, Erwin Wurm, FriendsWithYou, Gauthier Roumagne, Gregor Hildebrandt, Guadalupe Maravilla, Jakob Kudsk Steensen, Hayat Osamah, Huda AlNasir, Hana Almilli, Ibrahim Romman, Iván Argote, Janet Echelman, Jeppe Hein, Jose Dávila, Julian Charrière, Julius Von Bismarck, Khaled Makhshoush, Kyung-Won Moon and Joonho Jeon, Laurent Grasso, Li Qing, Lúcia Koch, Madhawi Algwaiz, Mariko Mori, Marinella Senatore, Max Hooper Schneider, Melanie Smith, Mel O’Callaghan, Miguel Chevalier, Monira Al Qadiri, Mohammad Al Faraj, Muhannad Shono, Nawaf Alkuhaimi, Nevin Aladag, Oscar Tuazon, OSGEMEOS, Pharah Al-Ghalib & Amr, Abuzaid, Phi Studio, Quayola, Rafael Rozendaal, Random International, Rafael Domenech, Sam Samore, Sam Durant, Sara Al-Mutlaq, Sarah Abu Abdullah, Shilpa Gupta, Shoplifter, Sophie Laly, Simon Heijdens, Stefan Bruggemann, Studio Bond, Suliman Alsalem, Superflex, Sultan Bin Fahad, Tobias Rehberger, Ugo Schiavi, Vivian Caccuri, Yinka Ilori, Younes Rhamoun
IG @noorriyadhfestival / @riyadhartofficial
Photo credit: Courtesy of Noor Riyadh and Havas