A Kingdom as a Palimpsest: Ahmed Mater's Artistic Exploration of Faith, Politics, and Modernity

Ahmed Mater is an artist, photographer and physician based in Saudi Arabia. Over the past 40 years, Mater has gathered many antiques and precious possessions to preserve elements of a discarded Saudi Arabia and create fascinating installments with a focus on faith, politics and the encroachment of modernity on them. Technological upheavals are common in Saudi Arabia; nowhere is this more true than in its holiest city, Mecca. Mater explores the ever-changing scenery of the city, newly introduced technology, and so-called modern conveniences. In turn, his work analyzes how these changes affect the psychology and values of Mecca's inhabitants. Mater’s artistic focus is an example of the United Nations Sustainability and Development Goal of Quality Education as well as Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure.

Mater was born in 1979, one of the most significant years in Saudi Arabia's history and its surrounding nations. The aftermath of the Iranian Islamic Revolution and the seizure of the Grand Mosque in Mater's homeland led to societal shifts. These events resulted in a more conservative religious society as a response to growing civil unrest. This unrest was due to the people feeling bereft of power after several Western-backed foreign interventions in Saudi Arabia.

The seizure of the Grand Mosque was viewed as a warning sign by the Saudi Government, which decided to pivot to a more fundamentalist culture which encapsulates the nation today. Mater’s own views on how this changed the country can perhaps be best exemplified through his camera's lens. He used photography as his medium, capturing the culture of Mecca in his series Desert of Pharan. The series looks at the many aspects of the bustling city of Mecca and its continued evolution and development. With pictures overlooking the Grand Mosque, as well as hotel rooms, which cost $3,000 a night.  

The artist writes that he was motivated to begin his many projects relating to the city because he felt it had changed from his previous visit, to the point where it was nearly unrecognizable from how he used to view it. In order to preserve a lot of what Mater loved about his country, he began collecting many old items of memorabilia during the decades of this major shift in culture and societal norms. Entitled 100 Found Objects, he collected items which he believed held inherent voices and stories to keep them alive during the Meccan metamorphosis. Objects such as Viewmasters, newspapers, postcards, as well as several other miscellaneous antiques across that time period. He also collected items attached to buildings, such as doorknobs and even windows, for his Mecca Windows installation. 

Perhaps his most famous series, Magnetism, is an ingenious metaphor for Mecca's draw on those of the Islamic faith.  A cube is placed on a blank paper and encircled by many grains of iron filings, imitating the congregation around the Kaaba, the holiest site in Islam. The artist’s scrutiny of the current direction that his country is undergoing comes from a place of love and critiques of what he deems vanity projects in the city of Mecca come from a place of care. He sees the city as becoming a commercial hub which commodifies its existence and exploits the faith of the followers of Islam. 

The artist’s collection of X-Ray paintings titled Evolution of Man references his past as a physician, yet it also provides an introspective look into his thoughts and feelings. It is an unsubtle critique of the petroleum industry of Saudi Arabia and how it has become a snake that eats its own tail. The gruesomeness of work evokes shock and reflection in the Kingdom's population, which seems to have abandoned their desires for luxury and glamour. The Kingdom desires nothing more than to present itself as a beacon of glory, with an obvious example being the fourth tallest building in the world, The Makkah Royal Clock Tower Hotel. 

Ahmed Mater provides a succinct and detailed history and interpretation of one of the most influential time periods in his country's history — A pathway he is fearful of but is also all he knows. The many mediums in which he presents these pieces of knowledge act as time capsules, allowing a bygone era to remain in existence while also longing for its more familiar days. The artistic and historic value that is derived from these works is a testament to the innovation and influence of Mater’s many projects. With the constant technological advancements of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, there will always be items to collect and pictures to take as the country continues on the path it selected.