Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Saturday, Jul 12, 2025

For the love of youth: Warhol exhibition draws crowds in AlUla

For the love of youth: Warhol exhibition draws crowds in AlUla

In a first for the Kingdom, 70 iconic works by late US visual artist, film director and producer Andy Warhol are on view at an exhibition in AlUla until May 16.

Titled “FAME: Andy Warhol in AlUla,” the exhibition is part of the second edition of the AlUla Arts Festival.

It is curated by Patrick Moore, director of The Andy Warhol Museum, the US institution based in Pittsburgh that houses the artist’s most iconic works related not only to stardom, celebrity and Hollywood, but also to characters on the fringes of society.

On view within Maraya concert hall’s sleekly erected series of gallery spaces are Warhol’s portraits of Salvador Dali, Lou Reed, Judy Garland, Marlon Brando, Mohammed Ali, Bob Dylan, Dolly Parton, Elizabeth Taylor and others.

Dolly Parton (L) 1985 and Judy Garland, ca. 1979


The works are being shown amid one of the most riveting desert landscapes in the world — representative of AlUla’s bid to become a global cultural destination in its own right.

“I believe both Arts AlUla and The Andy Warhol Museum had similar goals and objectives that were aligned in having really a window for the world in Saudi and a window for Saudi in the world,” Nora Aldabal, arts and creative planning director at the Royal Commission of AlUla, told Arab News.

“The Andy Warhol exhibition comes from a conversation or an introduction of an artist who played a big role in documenting an era of transformation and The FAME exhibition today curated by Patrick Moore speaks to that change.”

Self-Portrait (Fright Wig), 1986.


The exhibition similarly speaks of the great transformation on both the social and economic fronts that is taking place in the Kingdom since Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman launched Vision 2030 in 2016, placing the growth of the creative economy at the center of the Kingdom’s strategy to eliminate reliance on oil and gas and foster new sectors.

“For me, AlUla was an intoxicating place to stage this exhibition,” Patrick Moore told Arab News. “It’s this combination of extraordinary natural wonders and contemporary art that makes it so powerful.

“The response has been so positive from both the Middle East region and internationally,” he added. “Staging FAME here is about the power of cultural exchange.”

Moore said that the current period of transformation in Saudi Arabia would have fascinated Warhol, who died in 1987. “Watching men and women get dressed up and go to events taking place all over the Kingdom — many staged for the first time — Warhol would have found it all very charming and glamorous,” he added.

“Warhol loved young people and he loved youth,” Moore said. “He sort of worshiped youth. So, I think first and foremost he would’ve loved to have been in Saudi Arabia where the population is so young, so transformative and so eager to participate in the change.”

In one gallery room, a group of Saudi men and women gleefully play with a multitude of floating metallic balloons in Warhol’s 1966 installation “Silver Clouds.”

Muhammad Ali, 1978.


The idea is to create a sense of play and freedom with the work — even if at times guests are momentarily trapped by the balloons until they push them away.

“I think they want to be seen — they want to present themselves to the world,” Moore said of the Saudi youth. “And that is very similar, I think, to the impulse that Warhol had when he was a youngster growing up in gritty Pittsburgh and escaping to the cinema and seeing all these glamorous people on the silver screen and wondering, am I ever going to be a part of that?”

As Moore rightfully notes, young Saudis, like those attending Warhol’s show or the Red Sea Film Festival or countless other fashion shows, contemporary art exhibitions, sports matches or car races, are finally experiencing in their home country what they had watched from years taking place abroad — much like Warhol did when he went to the cinema growing up.

Also on view are the artist’s filmed portraits, “Screen Tests,” that consist of a series of short, silent, black and white film portraits of counter-culture icons created between 1964 and 1966.

Among these is a black and white film of Lou Reed, a founding member of the famous The Velvet Underground rock band, sipping a Coca-Cola bottle while donning thick black-rimmed sunglasses — a reminder to live and relish the cool of the present moment.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Mediators Edge Closer to Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Agreement
Germany Seeks Taliban Deal to Deport Afghan Migrants
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
Qatar Airways Clears Backlog of Passengers Following Missile Threats
Iran's Parliament Votes to Suspend Cooperation with Nuclear Watchdog
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Oman Set to Introduce Personal Income Tax, First in Gulf
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
G7 Leaders Fail to Reach Consensus on Key Global Issues
Mass exodus in Tehran as millions try to flee following Trump’s evacuation order
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
Energy Infrastructure Becomes War Zone in Middle East
Iran Conducts Ballistic Missile Launches Amid Heightened Tensions with Israel
Iran Signals Openness to Nuclear Negotiations Amid Ongoing Regional Tensions
Shock Within Iran’s Leadership: Khamenei’s Failed Plan to Launch 1,000 Missiles Against Israel
UK Deploys Jets to Middle East Amid Rising Tensions
Exiled Iranian Prince Reza Pahlavi Urges Overthrow of Khamenei Regime
×