I find it deeply disturbing to see the expression “foreign art” being widely used by our artists and critics amid rising calls for the Saudization of this human creation. The advocates of the nationalization of art even call for festivals and concerts to be solely confined to Saudi artists.
The advocates of the Saudization of art seem to forget the fact that art knows no boundaries and that the universality of art as a human creation transcends both time and space. Without communicating and interacting with the outside world we would have never come to know the human creation of other peoples and nations and our art would not have reached others.
Saudi artists, especially singers, rely more on concerts and other art functions held outside the Kingdom to seek popularity more than on local events. This helped the Kingdom’s art to transcend time and space and win the admiration of the very “foreigners” that some try to exclude from taking part in Saudi art events.
It is true that any country has to establish a local perception of art since it is the local character that is appreciated by both the local and foreign population. However, the endeavor to create an identifiable national culture does not mean excluding the outside factor in a world that is increasingly recognizing the universality of culture. Art helps make people become aware of and know more about places and people.
The advocates of the nationalization of art should ask themselves this question: Where would we be standing today if Saudi art was prevented from reaching out to Arab and other countries?
We must admit that our Arab brothers were far ahead of us in this area. It was only after we started communicating with the outside world that Saudi art found its way to universality.
Art should serve as a nationally unifying force, but we should avoid creating antagonism or any kind of clash between what is traditional and what comes from across the border.
