National Pavilion UAE Reveals Venice Biennale Exhibit Artist & Title

The National Pavilion UAE has announced details of its exhibition at the 2024 Biennale Arte in Venice. Titled ‘Abdullah Al-Saadi: Sites of Memory, Sites of Amnesia’, this exhibition marks the country’s eighth participation at the world-renowned international festival.

The exhibition - which will feature eight artworks by the eponymous Emirati conceptual artist - has been curated by Tarek Abou El-Fetouh, who is currently senior curator and director of the performance department of Sharjah Art Foundation. ‘Abdullah Al-Saadi: Sites of Memory, Sites of Amnesia’ offers insights into the artist’s creative process in relation to the practices of Arab poets centuries ago.

Al-Saadi’s work ranges from painting and drawing to the collection and systematic categorisation of found objects and the invention of new alphabets. Inspired by his travels through the Arabian Peninsula, Al-Saadi’s great affinity for nature and rural life informs his art, which explores our changing environment as well as personal and cultural history.

Al-Saadi starts to draw, paint, or write during his journeys once he feels truly immersed in nature; classical Arab poets described this kind of immersion as the process leading up to the composition of their poems.

The 60th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia will open to the public on April 20th until November 24th.