Rebecca Anne Proctor

DUBAI: The Saudi pavilion at Biennale Arte 2024 in Venice has revealed the name of artist Manal AlDowayan’s installation at the event as “Shifting Sands: A Battle Song.” The multimedia installation artwork was inspired by the evolving role of women in Saudi Arabia.

“Shifting Sands: A Battle Song is a call for solidarity in the context of the global representation of women in and from Saudi Arabia, and a rally to take ownership of our identity as we navigate both the physical space we inhabit and the narratives that have historically defined us,” said AlDowayan in a released statement.

The work, which will be unveiled during the Biennale’s opening week beginning April 16, is the result of three preparatory workshops the artist conducted across Saudi Arabia — in Alkhobar, Jeddah and Riyadh — in January, where she welcomed more than 1,000 women who responded to an invitation to contribute to her upcoming work for the pavilion.

During the workshops, women of all ages and backgrounds were invited to engage in group singing sessions led by AlDowayan and Ileana Yasmin, a vocal coach for Saudi Arabia’s Music Commission.

The women were also asked to reflect on the idea of visibility and invisibility in the context of the international media. Additionally, they were asked to bear witness to each other by writing about and illustrating what they see in each other.

“For this artwork, I have returned to my community of women and asked the questions: What is the history that needs to be written through this work? What is the marker of the transformation that needs to be examined?” said AlDowayan in a statement.

The recorded singing, drawings and texts created by workshop participants will be incorporated into “Shifting Sands: A Battle Song” so that participants of the artwork will have their voices heard in unison on the international stage in Venice.

An all-female group of curators are responsible for the National Pavilion of Saudi Arabia at the 60th Venice Biennale this year, with Jessica Cerasi, Maya El-Khalil and assistant curator Shadin AlBulaihed working with AlDowayan on her installation for the event.