"ICON. ICONIC." at Louvre Abu Dhabi

Manal AlDowayan’s Sidelines (2016) in "ICON. ICONIC." as part of "Art Here" at Louvre Abu Dhabi for the Richard Mille Art Prize, curated by Reem Fadda. 

Congratulations to AlDowayan for being shortlisted as part of the top 10 artists for the Richard Mille Art Prize! Her exhibited work highlights the urbanization of Bedouins and an imbalance in the way that Saudi craftswomen were treated around 2016. The work further considers larger implications of the phenomenon of sidelining looking at the potential for lost crafts, poverty, and the neglectful repercussions faced by women who stood in this context. This serves as a marker, indicating a transition that has resulted in a called-for renewal for the prioritisation of craft conservation as well as for its associated cultures and craftspeople. 

Sidelines explores a group of Saudi Arabian women who witnessed a societal transformation within their generation, the initial adjustments the result of fast paced change brought on by oil-fueled modernity. 

18 November 2022 - 19 February 2023

30 November 2022