As part of the 2024 Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennale public program, Lucy + Jorge Orta will prepare a Suhur meal for the local community, making this the 46th activation of their ongoing participatory project 70 x 7 The Meal. A long table installation for 300 guests will overlook Wadi Hanifah, a seasonal river and caravan route that historically led pilgrims along the valley to the market sustaining them with food and water along the way. Central to meal will be interventions by local Saudi artists, botanists, heritage experts, chefs, farmers, and the table artworks by Lucy + Jorge, these include an edition of Royal Limoges porcelain plates and hand embroidered table centrepieces that explore the loss of traditional knowledge and the resilience of native plant species. Extensive field research in collaboration with local botanists (NCVC) and on the symbolic meaning of traditional Sadu motifs (Atharna), come together in the work to create a unique lexicon of figurative plants and abstract geometric shapes that share an acute understanding of the complex interrelations between the extreme environment of the desert and human survival.
Learn more about the Diriyah Biennale.
