Dana Awartani to Represent Saudi Arabia at the 2026 Venice Biennale with Exploration of Cultural Memory
The Saudi Arabian pavilion at the 2026 Venice Biennale will be led by Palestinian Saudi artist Dana Awartani, showcasing her poignant explorations of conflict, cultural heritage, and the enduring power of memory. Curated by Antonia Carver, director of Art Jameel, with support from Hafsa Alkhudairi, the pavilion marks a significant moment for regional representation on the international art stage.
Awartani has rapidly become a prominent figure in the international art world, consistently earning recognition for her deeply material interpretations of the complexities of the Middle East. Her artistic practice is rooted in the rich craft and cultural legacies of Saudi Arabia, frequently involving collaborations with local artisans and displaced craftspeople.
Born and raised in Jeddah to a Saudi mother and a Palestinian father, Awartani’s formative education included a BA from Central St Martins in London. However, her artistic vision was profoundly shaped by subsequent intensive training in Islamic geometry at the Prince’s School of Traditional Arts and in the ancient discipline of illumination during a formal apprenticeship in Turkey. This unique blend of contemporary art education and traditional techniques informs her distinctive aesthetic.
Her work offers an elegant and often melancholic reflection on the material and intangible memories that persist throughout the Middle East and its diaspora, even in the face of widespread destruction. Awartani’s recent projects directly address the damage and loss of heritage sites, transforming trauma into powerful artistic statements.
At the 2024 Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennale, Awartani presented delicately torn and painstakingly darned dyed silks. The resulting seams, resembling scarred bullet wounds, served as a visceral metaphor for survival and resilience. Similarly, her contribution to the 15th Sharjah Biennial, When the dust of conflict settles (2023), involved recreating stone carvings from monuments across Syria that were damaged during the Arab Spring. This project was realized in partnership with Turquoise Mountain, a Jordan-based organization dedicated to supporting Syrian refugees through traditional crafts. Further extending this theme, Standing by the ruins (2025), featured at the Diriyah Islamic Arts Biennale, saw Awartani collaborate with Saudi Arabian mud-brick makers to reconstruct the intricate tiled pattern of Aleppo’s Grand Mosque, a landmark severely damaged during the Syrian Civil War.
The curatorial team brings substantial expertise and influence within the Saudi Arabian and Gulf art scenes. Carver’s leadership at Art Jameel, which oversees institutions like Hayy Jameel in Jeddah and the Jameel Arts Centre in Dubai, has been instrumental in fostering connections between regional artists and global audiences. Alkhudairi’s work facilitating art commissions in AlUla, a key cultural hub in Saudi Arabia, further strengthens the pavilion’s regional grounding.
“Dana’s work exposes all the textures, meanings and fragilities within the organic materials she uses, and then moves from that to the macro of our shared cultural heritage,” Carver explained to the Art Newspaper. “In the art world, contemporary art is being produced at the same time as cultural destruction is taking place. It feels very important to represent that sense of collapse between the ancient and contemporary at the Venice Biennale.”
Organized by the Visual Arts Commission, a division of the Saudi Ministry of Culture, this will be Saudi Arabia’s fourth presentation in its permanent space within the Arsenale, signaling a continued commitment to showcasing the nation’s vibrant artistic landscape on the world stage.
