The Moment of Change

Saudi women artists challenge cultural boundaries to document change in the notions of identity and agency. These artists employ many experimental techniques through unconventional themes while balancing cultural traditions, Saudi heritage, and Islamic identity. This chapter seeks to identify in what ways artists disrupt the commonly–known prohibition regarding figuration as relegated to the art of painting vis–á–vis photography, particularly in figurative depictions. It suggests two types of reality: the spiritual Real that is connected to painting, and the technological real, which is comparable to reality without a soul. It thus demonstrates how the interrelated concepts of art, reality, and the Real can impact values attached to representations of women in Saudi art. The chapter draws upon the frameworks of feminism, postcolonialism, Post–Panofskian iconography, and deconstruction.