News DeskRiyadh, Saudi Arabia – Diriyah Art Futures (DAF), a leading center for New Media Arts in the Middle East and North Africa, has launched its latest exhibition, CONTINUUM ’25. The showcase features the works of its first group of emerging artists and mentors from the year-long Emerging New Media Artists programme.
The exhibition, which opened on September 14, has already drawn artists, cultural leaders, and the public to DAF. Visitors can explore a variety of compelling works that utilize cutting-edge technology, including immersive installations, sound art, virtual reality, and AI-generated pieces.
CONTINUUM ’25 presents the creations of 11 emerging artists and two mentors. Curated by Irini Papadimitriou, the artworks delve into themes of memory, identity, displacement, climate, ethics, and algorithmic power. The pieces were developed under the guidance of renowned artists Anna Ridler, Karen Palmer, and Madeline Gannon, and they skillfully blur the lines between the real and the artificial, human and machine, and organic and synthetic.
The exhibition’s opening was marked by a panel discussion featuring curator Irini Papadimitriou, DAF’s Director of Education Tegan Bristow, and artists Khaled Makhshoush, Dhia Dhibi, and Samia Dzair. Moderated by Wejdan Reda, the conversation highlighted how new media artists use technology to expand their creative practices and emphasized the importance of collaboration between artists, researchers, and technologists.
The Emerging New Media Artists Programme, a collaboration with Le Fresnoy – Studio National des Arts Contemporains in France, provides artists with professional equipment, a production budget, and various learning opportunities. The title of the exhibition, CONTINUUM, reflects the program’s focus on the ever-evolving nature of creative inquiry.
The artists featured in CONTINUUM ’25 are:
- Turki AlQahtani (Saudi Arabia)
- Khaled Makshoush (Saudi Arabia)
- Salma Aly (Egypt)
- Samia Dzaïr (Algeria)
- Aya Abu Ghazaleh (Jordan)
- Dhia Dhibi (Tunisia)
- William Brooks (Wales)
- Junsoo Kim (South Korea)
- Youssef El Idrissi (Morocco)
- Kyle Donald Marais (South Africa)
- Mohamed Al Mubarak (Bahrain)
Mentors Karen Palmer and Anna Ridler are also participating in the exhibition.
CONTINUUM ’25 is open to the public at Diriyah Art Futures until November 15. The exhibition is complemented by a public program of workshops, talks, and other activities focused on AI, VR, and digital photography.
September Public Programme
- Friday, September 19 | Workshop: Stories of Home: Digital & Hand Embroidery
- Time: 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM
- Language: Arabic and English
- Participants will explore the concept of “home” through regional embroidery and new media art. Using Photoshop and AI, they will design symbolic representations of their personal stories, which will then be translated into hand-embroidered keychains.
