Another event in the area has concluded after a great first year-this time it’s the Shift22 street fest in Riyadh, hosted by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture. Shift22 has quickly established itself as a welcome addition to the Middle Eastern art festival calendar.
The free-to-attend event was held in Riyadh’s Irqah hospital, with the inaugural iteration running from October 13 to October 30. It was all about recognizing developing kinds of art in the Kingdom, such as graffiti, which was previously a taboo medium but today embodies young culture all over the world.
Huda Beydoun, Rexchouk, Zeinab Al-Mahoozi, and Refik Anadol are a few of the artists who took part. They collaborated at Irqah Hospital to transform the space into a night museum with dynamic light displays, projections, sound installations, murals, and the use of trash gathered from the area and transformed into works of art. Visitors to the festival may also take part in staples of street culture including breakdancing, skating, street cuisine, fashion, music, and more.
Dina Amin, CEO of the Visual Arts Commission explains that “Shift22 is part of the Commission’s efforts to celebrate and encourage local and international visual artists by providing platforms for creative exchange and dialogue. This festival is an example of the many exciting visual arts opportunities that are a result of the growing local art scene.”
The second installment of Shift22 will take place in October of next year.