The highly skilled masons who carved these enormous and intricate facades into the desert cliffs drew inspiration from across the ancient world: a tomb might include Greco-Roman columns supporting a triangular pediment and stepped crenellations from Mesopotamia, while guarding the entrance might be sphinxes, eagles, and griffins―all powerful symbols from Egypt and Persia. Stylistically these figures closely resemble statues found in ancient Egypt and Greece, but with Arabian additions such as headbands and bracelets-the artistic exchange given a local twist.ĪlUla’s monumental art took on its most sublime form in the colossal tomb facades of Hegra, and here, too, we see far-flung cultural influences engraved into the desert. Among the most impressive works are the life-size and even larger statues found at the temple of Dhu Ghabat: All look alike―men with strong limbs, defined stomachs, and broad shoulders, standing with hands clenched, left foot forward, and stern gazes. Spirituality also emerges in carvings of abstract human figures carrying what are interpreted to be ritual offerings, while AlUla’s prehistoric tombs show artistic qualities with their distinctive stone walls forming “tails” and other elegant shapes in the landscape.Īround 500 B.C., AlUla may even have had its own sculpture school, with the people of Dadan crafting exquisite art that may have reflected wealth, or may have been used in religious practices. These early artworks often drew inspiration from nature, depicting animals that the artists saw, hunted, or even feared-from lions and ibex to ostriches and Arabian leopards. Thousands of years ago, Neolithic, Bronze, and Iron Age artists scrambled up rock-strewn slopes to etch images into the sandstone with primitive tools. Some of AlUla’s earliest art is carved into the desert landscape itself. Such international exposure made AlUla a meeting point of cultures, influencing the area’s long and artistic traditions. Later, with the spread of Islam, thousands of pilgrims from across the world passed through AlUla’s oasis each year as they traveled the pilgrimage routes to the holy cities of Makkah (Mecca) and Medina. The life-sustaining waters of AlUla ensured that it become a vital stop for ancient traders carrying spices, aromatics, and more across the grueling desert from southern Arabia to the Mediterranean. Unauthorized use is prohibited.įor millennia, AlUla has been a vibrant center of cultural exchange due to its unique position as an oasis in the vast Arabian desert. For Desert X, art is a medium for cultural exchange, and this was reflected in the choice of AlUla as its first location for a Desert X exhibition beyond the U.S. The works by acclaimed international artists aim to amplify the beauty of the desert while expressing profound ecological, cultural, and spiritual themes shared by indigenous peoples and the wider global community. It was one of the monumental installations of Desert X AlUla, a temporary art exhibition staged on a spectacular scale in the striking sandstone landscape of Saudi Arabia’s AlUla oasis.ĭesert X has its roots in the Coachella Valley of California where, since 2017, exhibitions have brought the desert to life through artistic installations modeled on and within the landscape. Because this work of art, like a mirage and the shifting sands of the desert, is transient, and now that the art exhibition has closed, it leaves behind no trace. It stands as an artistic representation of a mirage-or at least it stood. In the searing heat of the desert, a sculptured pool of stainless-steel shimmers as it reflects the bright sunlight, the image constantly changing with the time of day and angle at which it is viewed.
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