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25 January - 25 May, 2025

Islamic Arts Biennale 2025

The Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 provides a holistic platform for new discourse about Islamic arts, offering an unparalleled space for learning, research, and insight. By juxtaposing contemporary and newly commissioned artworks with historical objects from Islamic cultures, the Biennale explores how faith is experienced, expressed, and celebrated through feeling, thinking, and making. It offers a unique platform for artists to explore themes of spirituality, identity, and the intersection of past and present, while fostering cross-cultural connections and expanding the global understanding of Islamic art and culture.

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2025 Edition

And All That Is In Between: The Second Edition of the Islamic Arts Biennale 
"Exploring Faith Through Feeling, Thinking, and Making"

And All That Is In Between is a phrase that appears multiple times in the Quran: “And God created the Heavens and the Earth and all that is in between.” It encapsulates the vast and awe-inspiring scope of God’s creation as experienced by humankind. The 2025 Islamic Arts Biennale draws inspiration from this verse, presenting a profound exploration of how faith is lived, expressed, and celebrated. Spanning five exhibition halls and outdoor spaces, the Biennale showcases over 500 historical objects and contemporary artworks, inviting visitors to reflect on the divine's wonders and humankind's connection to it. In its second edition, the Islamic Arts Biennale expands significantly, featuring more works and a broader range of participating institutions. This growth establishes the Biennale as a global hub for Islamic arts, uniting treasures from renowned institutions worldwide. From Tunis to Tashkent and Timbuktu to Yogyakarta, the exhibition highlights Islamic arts' rich heritage and dynamic present. Iconic institutions such as the Louvre Museum (Paris), Victoria and Albert Museum (London), and Museum of Islamic Art (Doha) have contributed invaluable pieces. Other notable participants include the Ahmed Baba Institute (Timbuktu), Süleymaniye Library (Istanbul), and Saudi Arabia’s leading cultural centers like Ithra (Dhahran) and the King Fahad National Library (Riyadh). Visitors will also have the rare opportunity to view sacred objects from the holy sites of Makkah and Madinah, deepening the Biennale’s spiritual resonance and fostering dialogue and collaboration across cultures.

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The Curators

Julian Raby

Julian Raby

Artistic Director

Dr. Julian Raby received his bachelor’s degree with honors from Magdalen College at the University of Oxford in 1971 and...

Amin Jaffer

Amin Jaffer

Artistic Director

Dr. Amin Jaffer is Director of The Al Thani Collection, an encyclopedic holding of more than 5,000 works of art...

Abdul Rahman Azzam

Abdul Rahman Azzam

Artistic Director

With a BA and DPhil in Middle East and Islamic history from the University of Oxford, Abdul Rahman Azzam is...

Muhannad Shono

Muhannad Shono

Contemporary Art Curator

Muhannad Shono is a multidisciplinary artist, trained in architecture and working across a range of different mediums. Across intimate works...

Curatorial Framework

The Islamic Arts Biennale consists of seven unique components (AlBidayah, AlMadar, AlMuqtani, AlMidhallah, AlMukarramah, AlMunawwarah, and AlMusalla) spread out through different galleries and outdoor spaces, across 100,00 square meters of dedicated exhibition space.

The Artists

And All That Is In Between

The Biennale presents new commissions from more than 30 artists from Saudi Arabia, the Arab World, and beyond. These commissions demonstrate the Diriyah Biennale Foundation’s work to offer a global stage for Saudi artists, and to bring artists from around the world to Saudi Arabia so that local audiences can encounter compelling practices and diverse perspectives in contemporary art.

View Artists List

The AlMusalla Prize

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The AlMusalla Prize is an international architecture competition for designing a Musalla, a space for prayer and contemplation located at the Islamic Arts Biennale in the Western Hajj Terminal at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The winning team was selected from a shortlist of renowned architects, including AAU Anastas (Palestine), Sahel AlHiyari (Jordan), Dabbagh Architects (Saudi Arabia/UAE), and Asif Khan (United Kingdom). The jury, chaired by Prince Nawaf Bin Ayyaf and comprising esteemed members such as Farrokh Derakhshani, Lina Ghotmeh, Azra Akšamija, and Ali Malkawi, evaluated submissions based on versatility, modularity, sustainability, and the ability to welcome both Muslim and non-Muslim visitors. The competition emphasized creating a structure of at least 150 square meters, meeting all prayer requirements, and capable of easy disassembly and reassembly, ensuring the project's legacy extends beyond the Islamic Arts Biennale.
 The inaugural prize for 2025 was won by EAST ARCHITECTURE STUDIO for their proposal titled ON WEAVING, which was developed in collaboration with AKT II, Rayyane Tabet, and Sweco. 

EAST's winning proposal, On Weaving, takes inspiration from a book of the same name by prominent textile artist, Anni Albers. Their design reflects on theoretical approaches to craft and its inherent potential to create spaces of coexistence. 
 
In their response to the competition brief, which asked for innovative and sustainable designs with a clear focus on the afterlife of the structure beyond the days of the biennale, EAST was able to produce an easily disassembled-then-reassembled musalla which experiments both with new local building materials and construction methods. 
 
In their research, EAST identified that Saudi Arabia is the second largest producer of date palms in the world. They discovered that once the plant has passed its productive life, trees are typically felled, burned or sent to landfill. The team recognized an opportunity to transform the fronds and fibers left by these neglected local trees into a sustainable material for crafting the musalla’s structure and textile cladding—by so creating a prototype for a sustainable future of regional architecture. 
 
The double-sided pedestal is staggering in its ascent and thinning out as it reaches towards the sky. Its form resembles a loom, paying homage to tangible and intangible cultural heritage of weaving traditions and craftsmanship. It is autonomous, but also modular to suggest multiple uses – acting as structure, function, and ornament. The earthy colors that make up the musalla’s exterior are energized with color within the structure’s interior, where natural dyes made from local and regional plants are used to create bright reds, blues, greens and yellows. The musalla’s open courtyard invites visitors to sit, gather or pray, individually or communally. 

The Venue

Western Hajj Terminal - Jeddah

Haj Parking A, Hajj Terminal West, 2023 AIRPORT HAJJ ROAD, King Abdulaziz International Airport, Jeddah 23721

Facilities

Free Parking
Free Wi-Fi
Wheelchair Accessible
Family Friendly
Western Hajj Terminal - Jeddah

General Admission

The Islamic Arts Biennale is the world’s first biennial dedicated to the Islamic arts, offering the opportunity for renewed perspective and research around the genre.

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