Quick Facts
Biography
Ahmed Mater (born 1979, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia) is a Saudi artist and physician. His mediums are photography, calligraphy, painting, installation, performance and video. His work, which explores the narratives and aesthetics of Islamic culture and addresses consumerism and transformation in the region, has attracted an international audience. In 2003, he cofounded "Edge of Arabia", an independent arts initiative dedicated to promoting the appreciation of contemporary Arab art and culture, with a focus on Saudi Arabia.
Life and career
Ahmed Mater was born in 1979 in Tabuk in the north west of Saudi Arabia on the Jordanian border. He is the first child of Mater Ahmed Al-Ziad, a sergeant in the Saudi Arabian Army, and Fatimah Hassan Abdullah Aseeri, a calligrapher and painter of traditional Aseeri houses. Ahmed has two brothers, Bandar and Mohamed, and four sisters, Aicha, Jawaher, Jamila and Reem.
In the 1990s Mater was given a studio space in Abha at the al-Meftaha artists' village.
He splits his time between the Saudi Arabian cities of Abha, Jeddah and Makkah.
Mater's wife, Arwa Alneami, is also an artist. Together they run a salon and private studio in their home in Jeddah.
Work
Mater's best known work is a series titled Prognosis, including the piece x-ray that was acquired by The British Museum. In this series, he combined explicit notes from his medical education with images of the Kaaba and a mosque, distributing them as a collage around blue and black x-ray images. The work seems to ask the viewer if humanity is more than just the structure of the body.
In 2006, Mater mounted an installation titled The Yellow Cow products, a work that address ecological challenges of modern urbanized society. According to the artist, "The cow with the yellow color was used as an expression of religious heritage."
His 2012 photos and film Artificial Light/Desert of Pharan reflects concern about the ruling al-Saud family's redevelopment of Mecca, including a multibillion-dollar complex of luxury hotels, malls and apartments.
His most famous piece is Magnetism, which uses a black square magnet surrounded by iron filings to represent the pilgrimage to the Ka'ba.
Exhibitions
- Selected Solo Shows
2001 Landing on the Earth's Surface, Al-Maseef Culture Club, Abha, KSA
2003 X-Ray Project - 6th Saudi Malwan Contest Tour, Jeddah, Beirut, Sidon and Manama (Jun10-sept25)
2004 Standing in Front of You, King Khaled University, Abha, KSA.
2004 Chewing (Mudgah), Almiftaha Arts Village, Abha, KSA.
2004 The End - Al Meftaha Arts Village, Abha (Dec15-Dec30)
2006 Ahmed Mater Al Ziad Aseeri -Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, London (May 12)
2006 Son of Aseer- Al Meftaha Arts Village, Abha (Oct10- Oct30)
2009 Illumination- Art Space, Dubai (Mar15-Apr 15)
2010 Ahmed Mater -The Vinyl Factory Gallery, London (Oct11-Oct31)
2013 100 Found Objects, Sharjah Museum, Sharjah, UAE.
Publications and monographs
2006 Word into Art: Artists of the Modern Middle East, British Museum Press
2009 ADACH Platform for Visual Arts in Venice, Catherine David
2009 New Vision: Arab Contemporary Art in the 21st Century, Thames & Hudson
2010 Art of the Middle East: Modern and Contemporary Art of the Arab World and Iran, Merrell Publishing
2010 Ahmed Mater (Monograph), Booth Clibborn Editions
2012 Edge of Arabia, Contemporary Art from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Booth-Clibborn Editions
2012 Hajj: Journey to the Heart of Islam, British Museum Press