Building on the success of its inaugural year — which brought together over 1,500 visitors — JAW 2014 presents a wide-ranging programme that promotes engagement with local creative practices and international contemporary art. JAW comes at a time when the world is increasingly looking towards the Middle Eastern art scene. For thousands of years, the port of Jeddah and the gateway to Mecca has stood as a crossroads, welcoming and accommodating varied cultures and people. JAW 2014, a localised, community-based platform for emerging talent and ideas, is dedicated to embracing this diversity and to celebrating Jeddah’s unique position.
EVENTS INCLUDE: French-Tunisian street artist eL Seed performs “calligraffiti” combining graffiti with traditional Arabic calligraphy to paint a mural in Jeddah’s Old Town, in collaboration with five local Saudi street artists.
Kakaibang Jeddah! — an exhibition by 15 Jeddah-based Filipino photographers, the first of its kind in the Gulf.
The unveiling of a newly restored outdoor sculpture park along Jeddah’s Corniche, with over 24 works by artists such as Henry Moore, Alexander Calder and Juan Miro.
EOA Projects’ border-crossing exhibition of over 100 works on paper, including works by Banksy, Walid Raad, Peter Blake Anish Kapoor and Ahmed Mater.
Wasma Mansour’s ongoing photographic study of single Saudi women living in London — an interrogation of the stereotypical representation of women from her native country.
Tunisia’s leading contemporary art gallery, Galerie El Marsa, presenting two of North Africa’s foremost calligraphy masters of the 20th Century
A solo show by Maha Mulluh presented by Selma Feriani Gallery and an exhibition featuring works by Abdulnasser Gharem, Maha Malluh, Shaweesh, Rashad Al Shaisi and Huda Beydoun at Ayyam Gallery.
Sotheby’s Exhibition Highlights from its upcoming contemporary art auction in Doha, including works by Ali Bandisadr, Jannane Al Ani, Mounir Fatmi, Damian Hirst, Hayv Kahraman, and Khalil Rabah.
An exhibition of 22 Saudi artists, curated by Arabian Wings, a grassroots organisation dedicated to supporting the visual arts of the Arab World.
A one-day symposium at one of Jeddah’s leading universities, Dar Al Hekma. The conference,‘Global Contemporary Art and Its Networks’, encompasses a series of lectures and panel discussions considering the development of contemporary art in its historical and global context. Participants include Saudi artists Abdulnasser Gharem, Ahmed Mater, Maha Malluh and Shaweesh, as well as international academics and celebrated art world specialists.
Jeddah Art Week (JAW) takes place under the patronage of Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture and Information and Abdul Latif Jameel Community Initiatives (ALJCI), and in cooperation with the Saudi Arabian Society for Culture and Arts.
WHEN: February 1st – 6th, 2014 WHERE: Venues across Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Photo: Susie of Arabia / Susie Johnson Khalil