• AlUla’s legacy: AlUla continues to preserve its rich artistic and cultural heritage, whilst setting a high standard for creative involvement in Saudi Arabia

AlUla, the jewel of Saudi Arabia's cultural heritage, captivates the world at the intersection of history and innovation. As a growing hub of cultural significance, AlUla acts as a canvas where the past and present meet, crafting compositions of artistic expression. Today, a series of exciting new Artist Residency Programmes is unveiled, elevating AlUla as a cultural focus and inviting artists and designers from all around the world to contribute to the ongoing storyline of this vital heritage.

Arts AlUla and the French Agency for AlUla Development (Afalula) have launched the new season of the AlUla Artist Residency Programme, a total of six programmes – five residencies and one alumni programme – taking place during the 2023/2024 season. Artists and designers from all over the world will participate in a rich and diverse range of residencies, spanning visual arts and performance, botanical and landscaping, heritage and innovation, and more. 

The new season of the AlUla Artist Residency Programme will further establish AlUla as a global hub for creative minds, drawing inspiration from its natural wonders, rich history, and diverse society. Together the programmes encourage artists and creatives to explore the boundless possibilities of AlUla, highlighting it as the go-to destination for immersive residencies.

During the AlUla Arts Festival, visitors will get the first opportunity to see some of the inspiring creations of the AlUla Artist Residency Programmes as they preview within the festival itself. The residencies will be showcasing two exhibitions at the AlUla Arts Festival from 9th February until 2nd March 2024. The exhibitions will be for the Visual Art Residency and the Design Residency. This collective and artistic initiative continues to establish AlUla as a vibrant cultural programme, encouraging visitors to enjoy the remarkable curations of these residency programmes.

PROGRAMMES:

AlUla Visual Art Residency, runs from October 2023 to February 2024, with seven artists taking part:

Bridging art, science and local narratives, this residency spotlights a unique collaboration between artists and on-site scientific experts, as well as representatives of the local community. It focuses on research, while offering production opportunities, aiming to draw inspiration from the area's ancient heritage and development; contemplating issues such as interspecies connections, human vs. non-human, local folklore and tale. Artists’ processes  and outcomes will be showcased in an exhibition at the Arts Festival in February 2024.

AlUla Design Residency, runs from October 2023 to February 2024, with five designers taking part:

The Design Residency is a five-month programme in AlUla that brings together designers and experts on-site. Participants, either individuals or collectives, will work across multiple disciplines such as infrastructure development and architectural design, exploring public realm interventions and urban furniture, sustainability and local building materials. Their findings, pieces and  prototypes will be showcased in an exhibition at the Arts Festival in February 2024. 


Arts, Landscaping, Botany and Agriculture Residency, runs from January 2024 to May 2024, with six artists taking part:

This residency will gather internationally renowned artists, engaging in research at  the intersection of art, landscaping, botany, and agriculture. The residency serves as the initial foundation for highlighting the future contemporary art museum in AlUla. It will enable creatives to initiate a research for public art commissions, tied to the museum’s gardens. It will celebrate the intricate tapestry of AlUla's botanical diversity; unveiling nature's canvas.

AlUla Heritage and Innovation Residency, runs from May 2024 to June 2024, with six artists taking part:

This specific programme focuses on exploring the fusion between art and digital technology, past and future, in the context of a land rooted in more than 200 000 years of human history. Unlike other programmes, it will emphasise research over production, proposing to artists a platform of reflection to nurture existing or future projects, and it will have an open studio which will replace a formal exhibition. Creatives are invited to feed, absorb, and accumulate all manners of cultural artefacts or natural elements, intertwining them with their imaginations and techniques, to write the scenarios of an imagined future.


Long-Term Residencies, runs from December 2023 onwards, with three artists taking part:

This new format has been developed to offer what is the most precious for artists: TIME. Targeted at confirmed artists from around the world, selected creatives will call this spectacular oasis-city home over an extensive timeframe of over a year, with field trips throughout the research, creation and production process. Artists from the region and abroad will be able to pursue their artistic endeavours through experimentations, leading to ambitious commissioned projects to nurture AlUla cultural assets collections and other creative projects. Two of the selected artists will be partaking in the contemporary art museum in AlUla’s pre-opening programme, and the third artist will then be selected to participate in a separate project tied to a signature ecolodge hotel (Dar Tantora), which will open in January 2024.

Alumni Circle for Artists, April 2024:

The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) and the French Agency for AlUla Development (Afalula) are committed to nurturing a long term relationship with the artists they invite; as well as to follow their career, plus  the evolution of their projects initiated onsite. As a manifestation of their ethos to imagine “a destination built by artists”, 2024 will see the first iteration of a yearly symposium gathering alumni from the AlUla Artists Residency Programme, strengthening the development of  a dialogue forum and collaboration amongst and with artists in the long run. 

The Alumni Circle will serve as a dialogue forum for valuable feedback and reflections on the residency's impact, and how to better-embed arts and create  bigger growth through AlUla.

Collectively, AlUla Artist Residency is a step further towards building a thriving ecosystem for local, regional and international artists that will be embedded in AlUla,  and will  continue to give artists access to remarkable curatorial and artistic support in addition to production facilities.

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