The Diriyah Biennial Foundation has announced its cultural program for April, accompanying the third edition of the Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennial, which continues to welcome visitors at Jax District in Diriyah until May 2, 2026.
These cultural programs are an integral part of the Foundation’s vision to establish year-round public cultural initiatives that extend beyond the Biennial’s art exhibition. They provide a continuous platform hosting forums, exhibitions, talks, performances, film screenings, and workshops, designed to bring together artists, researchers, and the public for critical and creative exchange and learning.
The “Research Space” forum returns in April for its second edition, titled “Guardians of Time: Archives in Transition,” from April 22 to 25. In this annual symposium, artists, researchers, and practitioners from diverse backgrounds will explore the interconnectedness of art and everyday life.
The program includes panel discussions, workshops, film screenings, and interactive activities, featuring Yasmina Hilal, Nawaa, the Arab Design Archive, the Gulf Women’s Library and Archive, Anthropology in Arabic, and others. The symposium concludes with presentations and activities designed to highlight the role of archives within the biennial experience.
In parallel with this symposium, the April program offers a range of activities that explore archives as living, dynamic material open to research and experimentation. Among these is the masterclass "Transient Selfs: Archiving Movement and Image," an advanced three-day workshop led by the Dark Room Amman team.
During this workshop, participants will explore stop-motion techniques to revitalize their personal and family archives, using photographs and personal documents related to experiences of migration or transformation to create short visual works.
The masterclass "In the Presence of Absence," presented by director and artist Tamer El-Sayed, explores the artistic, ethical, and organizational aspects of archival work. It examines personal and family archives as spaces for producing works imbued with unique meanings, derived from the processes of their selection, reuse, and interpretation.
Similarly, the six-day "Alternative Archive Lab," led by the Anthropology in Arabic team, brings together participants from diverse disciplines to collaborate, research, and examine prevailing narratives. The program encourages them to develop new forms of knowledge and concludes with an open exhibition showcasing the participants' work in various artistic and conversational formats.
Also in April, the foundation collaborates with Christie's to present the masterclass "Contemporary Art in the Middle East: On Culture and Value," an advanced training program led by Ted Sandling, Marie-Claire Thiessen, and Dr. Ghada Al-Harthi.
Through lectures, tours, and field visits to artists' studios in the Jax neighborhood, the program offers an analysis of the region's art system and its relationship to the global cultural economy. The Biennale also hosts a series of interactive sessions targeting children and young people with special needs, and orphaned children, under the supervision of specialists in education, arts, and creative therapy. The experience has been carefully designed to take into account the different needs of the participants, giving them tools for self-expression, developing self-confidence, and fostering a spirit of discovery.
