A Cultural Oasis Unveiled during the AlUla Future Culture Summit
by Jeroen Frumau, Adhlal for Design

Not too long ago, I had the awesome chance to check out the Future Culture Summit in AlUla. Picture this: a spot in the Saudi desert where art meets nature, and everything’s built with sustainability in mind. For a couple of days, a bunch of us from different corners of the world, all into culture in our own ways, got together to chat about what the future holds. This whole shindig was put together by the Royal Commission of AlUla in partnership with the Ministry of Culture, with a big dream: to turn this place into a buzzing hub where people can talk about culture, innovation, and opportunities.

Now, I could go on about the cool place or the wild performances and stuff we saw, but what really caught my eye were the talks and ideas floating around about how culture’s evolving here. There was this opening talk by H.E. Rakan bin Ibrahim Altouq – Deputy Minister of Culture of Saudi Arabia – that set the tone – talking about how there’s this whole cultural ecosystem brewing in Saudi that’s just waiting to explode.

The conversations got me thinking in new ways about art, with people there not holding back on their opinions, experts throwing in fresh ideas, and some interesting examples of how communities are getting involved.

It’s like there’s this whole cultural playground opening up, not just for artists and designers, but for everyone involved in making and sharing culture. It’s all about mixing heritage with new ideas and opening doors for future generations to keep reshaping society. And it’s not just a local thing – there’s international collaboration too, like the French getting deep into AlUla’s Art and Design Strategy, showing how creative bridges are being built.

This ecosystem has the potential to really shake things up, to come up with new ways of expressing ourselves and experiencing the world, which is super important for changing societies and adding some variety to the economy. There’s a lot of talk about needing folks who can curate, conserve, and show off the past while pushing the boundaries for what’s coming next.

Adhlal’s been pushing this vibe for a while, inspired by their research: saying that we need new kinds of creative jobs to match the cultural shifts happening. The deputy minister nailed it when he said “there is a young Saudi generation looking for employment within the creative industry, and industry that worldwide has demonstrated to be a valuable contributor to local and collective GDP.”

So, what do you think? How can places like AlUla help build cultural bridges that don’t just connect us but also light the way for new kinds of global cultural exchanges?

And just to wrap up

Experiencing quantum computer-generated music in AlUla’s oasis, checking out unique sculptures at Desert-X, and diving into theatrical and food experiences under the moonlight were just out of this world. My first trip to AlUla wasn’t just about seeing new stuff; it felt like hitting a refresh button on how I see and think about culture. It was like finding hidden treasures in the desert.

CU soon my AlUla!