Andy Warhol’s iconic portraits of stars such as Marlon Brando and Dolly Parton are on display in the Saudi desert, in an event intended to rehabilitate the kingdom’s forbidding reputation.
The first exhibition in Saudi Arabia for the Pop Art giant is a tribute to the late artist’s obsession with celebrity, and his ability to predict the rise of contemporary influencer culture.
At the same time, the committee has tried to draw a connection between Warhol’s world — New York City half a century ago — and Saudi Arabia today.
“Warhol grew up through a time of radical change in America in the 1950s and 1960s, a time of new vibrant youth culture, and he documented and reflected,” said Sumantro Ghose, director of the art program at AlUla, a Saudi city. exhibition hosting.
“Right now in Saudi Arabia, we are in a time of great change, great transformation,” he said.
It would be hard to imagine a more unlikely ambassador for the new Saudi Arabia, where art and music flourish alongside the suppression of political speech and the criminalization of homosexuality.
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For one thing, the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, which collaborated on the exhibition, described him as a “gay icon”.
He also had little to do with the Middle East, except for a quick trip in the 1970s to Iran and Kuwait, where he complained in his diary about “strange coffee” and concluded that “there is no history in this place”.
But Warhol, who died in 1987, would have relished the opportunity to show his work in Saudi Arabia and engage in controversy, said Warhol Museum director Patrick Moore.
“I think this country that is developing before his eyes will appeal to him,” Moore told AFP.
“He will love the fact that he can be the first Western artist to perform at this level in Saudi.”
– Focus on fame –
Housed in AlUla’s Maraya, a mirror-covered concert hall flanked by sand dunes, the closely-edited exhibition features some of the more glamorous highlights from Warhol’s catalog in three main rooms.
Visitors first encounter short videos of celebrities filmed in the Manhattan studio “Factory”: a pensive Edie Sedgwick, Dennis Hopper and Lou Reed sipping a drink.
Then there are portraits of some of the biggest names of the era: from Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Judy Garland in the 1960s to Debbie Harry and Princess Caroline of Monaco in the 1980s.
The final room is devoted to Warhol’s “Silver Clouds,” helium-filled metallic balloons that fans keep releasing.
The exhibit is about Warhol’s personal life, but Moore says that’s because it doesn’t fit the focus given by the title: Fame.
“Literally no one has ever said to me, ‘Don’t talk about him being gay,'” Moore said.
“For me, as a gay man, I have been allowed to speak freely about my identity, about working on the project and participating.”
– ‘Influence over time’ –
Another project that coincides with the exhibition, which runs until May 16, shows Warhol’s influence in the Arab world.
A separate outdoor exhibition presents the “100 Best Arabic Posters”, bright advertisements for shows and festivals across the region.
“You can see (Warhol’s) influence over time, and color over time, and pop culture that originates from that era, is still reflected,” said Omar AlBraik, art program and activities manager for ArtsAlUla.
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The organizers also invited Hassan Hajjaj, a Moroccan artist and photographer, to create portraits of AlUla residents against the backdrop of a fun canvas.
With his fusion of high fashion and mainstream pop culture imagery, Hajjaj is sometimes called the “Andy Warhol of Marrakesh”, although he downplays the comparison and Warhol’s influence.
Still, he said he was grateful for the opportunity to learn more about Warhol and spend time at AlUla, which Saudi Arabia is trying to become a new global center for art.
Critics denounce the effort as “artwashing,” the use of cultural programming to distract from human rights abuses.
But Donald Warhola, Warhol’s nephew, said he believed the broadside had been missed.
“I’ve read the press… One can interpret it as, ‘Hey, Andy Warhol is working,’ but I don’t believe that person,” Warhola said.
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“No one knows what will happen, but I am very hopeful and I commend the Saudi government and the Saudi cultural world for allowing Uncle Andy’s art to be in the cultural space.”