Cultural life in Saudi Arabia navigates war

Welcome to AL-MONITOR Riyadh.

Missile and drone strikes continue to rattle the Gulf for a second week as the US-Israel-Iran war unfolds, with several countries in the region coming under Iranian fire and thousands of expatriates and stranded tourists scrambling to leave. Saudi Arabia has not been spared the anxiety gripping the region, even if it has avoided the scale of strikes seen elsewhere.

Yet across the kingdom, many cultural events are continuing during the holy month of Ramadan. For those venturing out during the third week of the season, we highlight a solo show in Jeddah by Saudi artist Sultan bin Fahad exploring the liminal, in-between spaces where public ritual transforms into individual reflection. Also in Jeddah, the newly opened Red Sea Museum is presenting an exhibition of archaeological treasures from the Red Sea. We also spotlight several Ramadan cultural festivities taking place in Riyadh and Jeddah during the holy month.

If you want to receive this newsletter or our other new City Pulse editions — including Dubai, Istanbul and Doha — sign up here.

Happy reading,

Rebecca

P.S. Have feedback or tips on Riyadh's culture scene? Send them my way at contactus@al-monitor.com.

1. Leading the week: Culture in wartime

A view of this year's JAX Ramadan Market. (Courtesy of Diriyah Biennale Foundation)

Saudi Arabia has not been immune to the spillover from the US-Israel-Iran war, with parts of the kingdom targeted by Iranian drones and missiles over the past two weeks. Strikes have hit the US Embassy compound in Riyadh as well as the Shaybah oil field in the Rub' al-Khali desert, near the Abu Dhabi border.

Despite the security tensions and uncertainty gripping the region, many aspects of daily life across the kingdom have continued during Ramadan. Residents and visitors say cultural venues, restaurants and public events remain open, even as the war weighs on the atmosphere.

“Despite our collective heavy hearts amid regional challenges, cultural life in Riyadh continues and ATHR Gallery remains open across its three locations to support artists and audiences,” Riyadh-based Rana Alamuddin, director of marketing and communications at ATHR, told Al-Monitor.

Other cultural institutions say they are taking a similar approach.

"Misk Art Institute continues to operate normally, and all our programs remain in place,” a spokeperson at the Misk Art Institute told Al-Monitor. “We are following the direction of the Kingdom regarding business operations, and as of the time of writing, there have been no instructions to hold, cancel, or alter any of our planned activities."

Those living in Saudi Arabia have yet to receive the regular emergency alerts that are being used in the United Arab Emirates to warn residents of missile and drone interceptions.

However, two days ago, the Saudi Civil Defense announced it would be testing the National Early Warning Platform, the system that sends emergency alerts directly to mobile phones, similar to what is being used in the UAE.

“We haven’t heard a siren since this whole thing started,” a resident in Riyadh who is working in communications told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity.  “People across the GCC now see Saudi as the last safe bubble. Some are even encouraged to get Saudi visas in case they have to escape quickly from the UAE or Bahrain if they don’t already have them.” 

In Jeddah, Hayy Jameel, the multidisciplinary cultural center and creative hub that is largely considered the place to be in Jeddah each Ramadan, is still open but not at full capacity.

“When the war began, we made the decision to continue to provide this vital space of gathering for the public, but out of a sense of precaution and maximizing care and safety, we limited capacity and varied our opening hours accordingly. These are times requiring an agile and responsive mode of working,” said Antonia Carver, the director of Art Jameel.

All public programming has been running as scheduled for entities under the Ministry of Culture. This included the popular JAX Ramadan Market in the JAX District, which ended on March 7.

Still, some residents note that as security concerns have ramped up this week, Riyadh has been quieter and people have been asked to work from home.

2. Word on the street: Bab Samhan Ramadan Tent

A view of the Bab Samhan Ramadan Tent in Diriyah, Riyadh. (Courtesy of Bab Samhan)

Even amid the tensions, Saudi Arabia’s restaurant scene has remained active. Restaurants in Jeddah and Riyadh have continued to welcome guests during Ramadan, with iftar and suhoor experiences still taking place.

Among the venues hosting Ramadan gatherings is the Bab Samhan hotel in Riyadh’s historic Diriyah district, which offers a traditional iftar experience in an open-air courtyard inspired by Najdi architecture. Guests can choose to sit outside or inside while enjoying a generous international iftar buffet featuring live culinary stations offering delicious local and Arab cuisine, including shawarma, grilled specialties, seafood dishes, kebabs, aromatic stews and other dishes, alongside traditional saj bread. Be sure to make room for dessert — an indulgent array of baklava and kunafa — while admiring stunning views onto the ruins of At-Turaif, the original seat of the Saudi state. 

Location: 7628 King Faisal Ibn Abd Al Aziz Road, Diriyah, Riyadh

Find more information here.

3. Riyadh diary

A view of “Threshold,” a solo exhibition by Saudi artist Sultan bin Fahad at ATHR Gallery in Jeddah. Courtesy of ATHR Gallery

• ‘Threshold’ by Sultan Bin Fahad

A solo show of works by Saudi artist Sultan bin Fahad explores the metaphysical and literal idea of place as a meditation on belief, memory and change. The exhibition — titled “Threshold” and curated by Zaynab Odunsi — sees the artist, bin Fahad, assemble fragments from found objects to explore the metaphysical space, or “threshold,” between reality and the spiritual realm. Works reveal partitions that appear to listen and solicit confession, stones that recall the imprint of hands and shadows, and screens that transform massed devotion into intimate encounters, among others. 

Bin Fahad has long considered art a journey between intangible memories and the cultures of everyday reality. Each component in this exhibition offers a striking meditation on how forms can act as vessels between matter and the spiritual realm.

Date: Until April 30

Location: ATHR Gallery, Jeddah

Find more information here.

• ‘Sunken Treasures’ at Red Sea Museum

Marking one of the first exhibitions of the Red Sea Museum, which opened in December, “Sunken Treasures: The Maritime Heritage of the Red Sea (كنوز غارقة: التراث البحري للبحر الأحمر),” presents a series of archaeological discoveries from the Red Sea to showcase cultural exchange, historic journeys along on the Red Sea and the lasting relationship between maritime heritage and environmental conservation.

Staged under the Saudi Museums Commission, one of the 11 sector-specific commissions of the Saudi Ministry of Culture, one of the main purposes of the show is to invite visitors to discover how shipwrecks became archives of history and eventually transformed into living coral reefs. 

Date: Until May 29

Location: Red Sea Museum, Jeddah

Find more information here.

• Ramadan program: Red Sea Museum

The newly opened Red Sea Museum in Jeddah is hosting a Ramadan program throughout the holy month that offers a rich variety of performances, cultural gatherings, workshops and storytelling sessions. The museum will feature workshops in traditional crafts, outdoor community programming and discussions, among other events. The events will be led by local artists, artisans and cultural practitioners and honor Ramadan’s spirit of community, charity and reflection. 

Date: Until the end of Ramadan

Location: Red Sea Museum, Jeddah

Find more information here.

4. Book of the week: ‘NewMilitary Strategies in The Gulf’

In this book, published in 2023, Jean-Loup Samaan looks at how over the last decade, Gulf rulers have aspired for greater strategic autonomy and distance from the West. Covering what has been termed the “Gulf Moment,” this is the first book to examine the military dimensions of economic and political changes in the region. Recent Gulf military strategy has prioritized the improvement of local armed forces and the diversification of defence partnerships, more in alignment with countries such as Russia, Turkey or China. However, as Samaan demonstrates, this has also led to the militarization of Gulf societies, the further erosion of multilateral initiatives, including the Gulf Cooperation Council, and the Gulf's perilous involvement in the war in Yemen. The author also highlights how the region continues to rely on the West.

5. View from Riyadh

A view of this year's JAX Ramadan Market. (Courtesy of Diriyah Biennale Foundation)

A popular Ramadan evening destination, the JAX Ramadan Market in Riyadh’s JAX District — a creative hub in the historic Diriyah neighborhood — featured food kiosks and trucks, homegrown fashion and accessories brands, and henna artists such as Rayie Henna. The market ran until March 7.

6. By the numbers

• As of early 2026, Saudi Arabia’s non-oil economy accounted for around 56% of the kingdom’s SAR 4.7 trillion ($1.25 trillion) GDP, according to PwC.
• Saudi Arabia welcomed 122 million tourists in 2025, according to official statistics. Vision 2030 sets a target of 150 million annual visitors.