NEW YORK: One minute, you are in a fancy gallery on New York’s Park Avenue, the next you are with a Saudi Arabian artist deep in the sands of the Kingdom’s deserts — a 10,000km journey made possible at the press of a button thanks to virtual reality (VR) headsets.
That was the experience of Mariana Souza, a 25-year-old New Yorker, who watched the 15-minute VR documentary at a show in midtown Manhattan on Monday about being an artist in a fast-changing Saudi Arabia.
“It was really interesting to listen to people really from there, rather than watching about them on the news,” Souza told Arab News, after peering into the goggles, tilting her head and spinning around on a rotating chair.
Beside her, everyone from teenagers to pensioners was trying out the VR headsets, swinging their heads around as they listened to Saudi artists describing the relaxing of cultural rules in a conservative society.
“It’s kind of showing people who might not be aware of what’s going on over there that it’s a modern culture as well as an ancient culture — people usually think that’s it’s just one or the other,” Souza said.
“It shows a balance and how people there respect their past and are also moving forward.”
In the documentary, artists describe how reforms are changing life for women, and how a cultural and religious prohibition on depicting people has been loosened, opening doors for painters, sculptors and other artists.
“I’m telling the story of a changing society through the perspective of its artists, using a similar language to what the artists use every day,” Matteo Lonardi, the Italian filmmaker who directed the VR film, told Arab News.
“It’s about a moment where nobody knows what will happen. A moment in the middle, a limbo, where people have lots of expectations, without knowing exactly what to expect. A moment to push their boundaries, but nobody knows how far they can push them.”
The high-tech art show, called “Reframe Saudi,” runs at Phillips auctioneers on Park Avenue from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily until Thursday. It features Lonardi’s documentary and the works of some two dozen Saudi artists.
Ahmed Mater, director of the Misk Art Institute, which organized the display, said it showed Manhattanites “how art and the creative industries are an integral part of the change that is transforming Saudi Arabia.”
“It is essential at this time that Saudi artists engage with audiences around the world, as they are here in New York, to help to tell the continuing story of change in Saudi Arabia,” said Mater, a Saudi doctor-turned-artist from Tabuk who works in film and photos.
The show dovetails with the visit of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who was in New York on Monday meeting Wall Street money men on his first official visit to the US since becoming King Salman’s heir last year.
Ayesha Malik, 28, a Saudi-born Pakistani-American photographer who documents the similarities between the lives of everyday folk in Saudi Arabia and America, described a burgeoning arts scene in the Kingdom.
"It’s a historic time and just exceptionally exciting to be an artist as society opens up as we create more galleries and art collectives. I came across a feminist art exhibition a few years ago and it’s just impressive that we’re seeing more and more of this kind of creativity nowadays,” Malik told Arab News.
“The opening of movie theatres means that Saudi filmmakers can now think about airing their work in their home country. There are fewer restrictions on concerts for musicians. It’s great to think that the country is opening doors for you rather than trying to close them."
The Misk Art Institute is tasked with turning Saudi Arabia into a home for grassroots cultural creativity, diplomacy and global exchanges via art festivals, workshops and competitions for fledgling Saudi artists.
The VR documentary is accompanied by a display of artworks by some two dozen artists from across the country, including bespoke Al-Qatt Al-Asiri mural paintings by women artists from southern Saudi Arabia.
Ali Moghawi, a New York-based Saudi writer involved in the murals, told Arab News that the Asir region’s tradition “deserves to be documented and spread” and is an “amazing catalyst for all those interested in art and museums.”
“For decades, reviving Al-Qatt Al-Asiri traditional art was no more than a dream,” Moghawi said.
“Now, we witness the realization of this dream as we are provided with an international platform where we can share it and provide art lovers and enthusiasts with the opportunity to behold the beauty of this ancient art and delve into its shapes, colors and geometric angles.”
Last year, the UN’s cultural wing, UNESCO, inscribed the Saudi tradition of group mural painting on its prestigious list of “intangible cultural heritage,” alongside the time-tested skills of falconry and throwing good pizza dough.
New Yorkers strap on virtual reality goggles for Saudi culture
New Yorkers strap on virtual reality goggles for Saudi culture
Former Saudi ambassador to US condemns Trump’s ‘mad ethnic cleansing plan’ for Gaza
- Prince Turki Al-Faisal says proposed resettlement of Palestinians would lead to more bloodshed
- Warns US leader will receive ’an earful’ from Saudi leadership if he visits Kingdom
LONDON: Donald Trump’s plan for the US to take control of Gaza and force Palestinians to leave the enclave would be “ethnic cleansing” that would spark conflict and bloodshed, Prince Turki Al-Faisal, Saudi Arabia’s former ambassador in Washington, said on Wednesday.
In an interview with CNN, Prince Turki, who is also a former head of the Kingdom’s intelligence services, angrily rejected the US president’s comments, which included a threat to send US troops to help turn Gaza into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
Prince Turki said he expected Arab and Muslim countries, along with other nations and Europe, to take up the issue at the UN to show that the world opposed “this mad ethnic cleansing plan.”
“It is a fantasy to think that ethnic cleansing in the 21st century can be condoned by a world community that stays on its behind, and does not respond to that,” Prince Turki told presenter Christiane Amanpour. “The problem in Palestine is not the Palestinians. It is the Israeli occupation. And this has been clear and understood by everybody.”
Prince Turki said Trump’s comments upended previous US policy that favored a two-state solution based on land for peace.
He said Trump’s plan was based on the position of Israeli extremist politician Itamar Ben-Gvir, “the ultimate ethnic cleanser,” who recently resigned as national security minister over the Gaza ceasefire.
Trump’s words were a “total acceptance of the Israeli position by the American government,” Prince Turki said, adding that this approach had been gaining support in US political circles over the past two years.
Prince Turki said that if Trump visited Saudi Arabia, he is likely to receive “an earful” from the Saudi leadership about “not just the wisdom of what he is proposing, but the downright unfairness and injustice.”
Trump has had close relations with Saudi Arabia and made the Kingdom his first foreign visit during his first term. Prince Turki said Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had pledged last month to invest $600 billion in the US.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry strongly condemned threats to displace Palestinians from their land and reiterated the Kingdom’s position that there would be no normalization of relations with Israel until the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
“This has been the position of Saudi Arabia from the beginning,” Prince Turki said.
He said that Trump’s Gaza plan on top of the “destruction and the devastation” of the territory during Israel’s campaign would only lead to more support for militant groups such as Hamas.
“Everybody has been telling the Israelis that if you repress these people, that if you punish them, if you inflict death and destruction and mayhem and genocide on them, all you are going to do is create more opposition,” Prince Turki said.
“That’s why they want to use ethnic cleansing to get the people out of the territory.
“So, their policy is clear cut and, unfortunately, we hear this reflected now in what Mr. Trump has said.”
Quality of life, economy, culture in Madinah improving under Vision 2030, authority says
- Local GDP, tourism and investment on the rise in region
- New opportunities for entrepreneurs expected
RIYADH: Quality of life, the economy and culture in Madinah are improving under Vision 2030, according to the Madinah Region Development Authority.
Speaking to the media on Wednesday, officials from the authority said they are aiming to highlight regional achievements and the transformation taking place there.
Ihab Salem, chief strategy officer at Madinah Region Development Authority, said: “With the support of the emir of the region, we will achieve (Vision 2030 goals) through all relevant sectors of work in the region.
“This also helps in achieving developmental mobility, economic growth, and increasing investment opportunities and local content in the Madinah region, thus opening many opportunities for male and female entrepreneurs in various sectors.”
Economically, local gross domestic product reached SR118 billion ($31 billion) in 2023, with SR53 billion in foreign investment, while the second quarter of 2024 saw a decrease in unemployment.
Tourism is the rise, with 18 million visitors to the region in 2024. Visitors stayed an average of 10 days in 2023. The region was ranked 88 globally on Euromonitor International’s 2024 index of the world’s top 100 city destinations, ranked seven globally on the Tourism Performance Index, and 3,200 locations are registered in the National Urban Heritage Register.
It was recently announced that foreigners can now invest in Saudi-listed companies owning real estate in Makkah and Madinah, following a landmark decision by the Saudi Capital Market Authority.
Al-Madinah Smart City has also gained a number of achievements, including an advancement in 11 ranks in the International Institute for Management Development Smart City Index, ranking 74th globally after ranking 85th in 2023, alongside a number of other milestones.
Other notable initiatives implemented in collaboration with the Vision Realization Program include the King Salman Project to expand Quba Mosque, which aims to expand the area tenfold and develop 57 historical sites to reach a capacity of 66,000 worshipers; and the Dar Al-Hijra project in Madinah, which aims to retrace the steps of the Prophet Muhammad’s journey.
Madinah is considered one of the most accessible regions in the Kingdom through land, sea and air. Its three airports transported 10 million passengers in 2024, across more than 72,000 flights operated by 77 airlines to 36 local and international destinations.
Public buses in Madinah now have 123 stations, and the Haramain High Speed Railway Depot has transported 9 million passengers, according to the authority.
Salem added that a number of projects can be attributed to private investors and entities like Maqsad Quba, Jabal Ayr and As Safiyyah Museum & Park.
The authority is highlighting Madinah’s economic diversification through the agriculture and mining industries, its global connectivity through tourism and cultural heritage offerings, and the vision achieved by its residents in the health, education private and nonprofit sectors.
Officials said that 58 initiatives have been launched under the Pilgrim Experience Program, 104 under the Quality of Life Program and 30 under the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program.
Saudi Shoura Council vice-speaker receives Hungarian official in Riyadh
Vice-Speaker of the Shoura Council Mishaal Al-Sulami received Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary Istvan Jakab and his accompanying delegation in Riyadh on Wednesday.
During the meeting the two sides discussed various topics of common interest, Saudi Press Agency reported.
Al-Sulami reviewed the Shoura Council’s work and the importance of parliamentary diplomacy in consolidating cooperation and supporting bilateral relations.
Jakab also expressed his aim of deepening bilateral relations between the two sides.
Jordan’s king welcomes Saudi support for Palestinian rights
- King Abdullah expresses appreciation during a call with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a day after controversial Gaza comments by Donald Trump
- King also meets Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and affirms rejection of “any attempts” to take control of Palestinian territories or displace the people there
RIYADH: Jordan’s King Abdullah on Wednesday welcomed Saudi Arabia’s continuing firm and supportive stance on the rights of the Palestinian people.
He expressed his appreciation during a telephone conversation with the Kingdom’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a day after US President Donald Trump suggested the removal of all Palestinians from Gaza so the US can take over the territory and rebuild it for others to use.
“The US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it, too; we’ll own it,” he said during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.
During their call, King Abdullah and the crown prince discussed the latest developments in the region and efforts to achieve security and stability, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Earlier in the day, during a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the king rejected “any attempts” to take control of Palestinian territories or displace the people there.
Saudi authorities issued a statement in the early hours of Wednesday, following Trump’s statement, that affirmed that the Kingdom’s position on the establishment of a Palestinian state remains firm and unwavering, and they rejected any “attempts to displace the Palestinian people from their land.”
It added: “Saudi Arabia will continue its relentless efforts to establish an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, and will not establish diplomatic relations with Israel without that.
“Achieving lasting and just peace is impossible without the Palestinian people obtaining their legitimate rights in accordance with international resolutions, as has been previously clarified to both the former and current US administrations.”
Superintelligent AI could replace human researchers, experts suggest
- AI opens new horizons in hypothesis generation, data analysis, Riyadh panel hears
- Global Healthspan Summit discusses ethical implications surrounding AI in healthcare
RIYADH: Experts at a Riyadh conference on Wednesday tackled the question of whether human researchers will become obsolete in the face of superintelligent machines capable of making groundbreaking discoveries.
A panel discussion during the Global Healthspan Summit, which has Arab News as a media partner, brought together specialists to explore the potential of artificial intelligence in scientific research.
The session, titled “AI — The Greatest Scientist in Waiting?” challenged the scientific community by positing that the new technology could surpass human capabilities in hypothesis generation, experimental design, and data analysis.
Two prominent contributors, Dr. Christoph Benn, director of the JLI Center for Global Health Diplomacy in Switzerland, and Jamie Heywood, CEO and founder of Alden Scientific in the US, took part in the discussion, which was moderated by Dr. Jens Eckstein, investment partner at the Hevolution Foundation in Saudi Arabia.
Heywood opened the conversation by emphasizing the transformative potential of AI.
“Mathematics and data techniques are not particularly new. What changes is the amount of data and the computational power we can apply to it,” he said.
Modern scientific method, when combined with AI, allows researchers to ask more nuanced questions, Heywood said.
Rather than relying on generalized clinical trials, researchers can now tailor inquiries to individual circumstances, thus enhancing the relevance and applicability of findings.
Heywood explained: “With enough variables and carefully designed queries, we can answer critical questions like: What will help me? What might be harmful? How will a change in my life, whether it be a diet or medication, feel?”
Such personalized insights would not be feasible without the integration of modern AI technologies, he added.
However, Heywood also cautioned against the pitfalls of AI, particularly the “garbage in, garbage out” phenomenon.
He explained that while machine learning can generate valuable insights, it is also susceptible to errors if the underlying data is flawed or misinterpreted.
“Machine learning can correct for seasonality errors in data, but it can also produce spurious correlations that traditional scientific methods might not catch,” he warned.
For instance, he recounted how the UK Biobank data suggested a correlation between vitamin D and aging that contradicted prior knowledge, highlighting the importance of critical oversight in AI-assisted research.
Benn echoed these comments, stressing the necessity of using AI responsibly in the context of personalized medicine.
“Is it possible to do modern medicine effectively without machine learning? I’m not even sure,” he said.
Benn said that the complexities of modern health data — comprising thousands of variables — are beyond the capacity of human intuition alone.
“Humans can intuit some relationships, but we can’t analyze data at that level,” he said.
The discussion also explored the ethical implications and regulatory needs surrounding AI in healthcare.
Benn pointed out the importance of establishing frameworks to ensure that AI tools are validated and certified.
“We need to trust these tools, both from the consumer’s perspective and from researchers,” he said.
He shared concerns raised by researchers who were hesitant to market their AI innovations without a clear certification process and accountability measures in place.
“Unless we know whether there is a certification process and whether we will be held accountable for unintended side effects, we will not market our AI tools.”
As the panel concluded, the conversation highlighted a critical juncture for the scientific community, noting that the integration of AI into research has the potential to revolutionize our understanding of health and disease, but also necessitates careful consideration of ethical and regulatory frameworks.
