For its second edition, in November 2022, the groundbreaking Noor Riyadh festival of light and contemporary art presents 190 monumental works signed by 130 artists from 40 countries and scattered in 40 emblematic locations throughout the city.

Curated by Hervé Mikaeloff, Dorothy Di Stefano and Jumana Ghouth and adviser Arnaud Morand, Noor Riyadh brings together Saudi and international artists such as Grimanesa Amorós, Gisela Colón, Douglas Gordon, winner of the Turner Prize, Alicja Kwade, Sabine Marcelis, Muhannad Shono, who represented Saudi Arabia at the Venice Biennale 2022, and French artists Daniel Buren, Jean-Michel Othoniel and Bertrand Lavier.

Entitled "We dream of new horizons", this second edition transforms the city into a dazzling nighttime gallery without walls, welcoming over 2.5 million visitors from international audiences to visitors from all over the globe.

Gathering a dedicated team, Manifesto manages the artist liaison, especially for Rashed AlShashai, but also the monitoring of artworks production and installation, their monitoring during the Festival and their dismantling, as well as supplier research for 82 of these monumental artworks in the public space. 

It is the second time that Manifesto collaborates with AlShashai, as he participated in the first AlUla Artist Residency, managed by Manifesto. (link to the other reference)

100 Million (2022) by Rashed AlShashai refers to the approximate global consumption of 100 million barrels of oil each day. A harsh green light at the center pulses at super speed in order to match this colossal number. Its severity is intentional, representing the catastrophic damage to the planet. Faced as we are with looming environmental debacle, epidemics and economic turmoil, the artist raises the question of whether it is reasonable to focus our attention anywhere else.

Yet this damage is largely illegible to the public, obscured by profit-driven consumer culture. This is illustrated by a dense fence of industrial materials in front of the pulsing light. In hiding such things, the artist conveys a message: “”we withhold from ourselves the opportunity to change for the better, in the hope that the world will reform itself.”

Within the fence, however, are layers built out of palm fronds and leaves: natural, environmentally friendly construction materials traditionally used by local craftsmen. As part of Alshashai’s material-led practice, these mediums are consciously used, highlighting the possibility of moving forwards by returning to the past, to “a brighter future where we as humans, alongside the palms, could survive”.