Artists usually meet the public once the work is finished, titled and carefully arranged inside an exhibition. Intermix Residency is opening the doors earlier.
From July 28 to 30, visitors can step inside Studio I08 in Diriyah’s JAX District and explore the projects developed during the latest three-month residency programme. Rather than presenting only a polished final exhibition, the open studio will offer access to the artists’ working spaces, research and creative processes.
The programme brings together 14 artists from Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, Serbia, China, Japan and Palestine, alongside a curator. Over the past three months, participants have used the residency to experiment, exchange ideas and develop new work across several artistic disciplines.
Visitors will be able to see the results through performances, workshops, discussions and conversations held across the three-day programme. They will also have the opportunity to speak directly with the artists and curator, offering a closer look at how each project developed during the residency.
That access is what makes an open studio different from a conventional gallery visit. Finished exhibitions tend to hide much of the work that comes before them. Early sketches, abandoned ideas, research materials and experiments are usually removed before the public arrives. At Intermix, those stages remain part of the experience.
The residency is designed to give artists the time, space and support to develop their practices while learning from one another. Participants receive individual studios and access to shared working areas, mentorship, workshops, field visits and professional development opportunities.
The programme has also connected them with several of Riyadh’s cultural institutions. Diriyah Art Futures, the Royal Institute of Traditional Arts, the King Abdulaziz Foundation for Research and Archives, the King Fahd National Library and the National Museum have all contributed to the residency’s research and wider exchange.
Bringing artists from different countries and backgrounds into one working environment is central to Intermix. Although each participant develops an individual project, the residency also creates space for ideas, techniques and experiences to move between studios.
JAX District provides a fitting setting for the open studio. The former industrial area has become one of Riyadh’s most active cultural neighbourhoods, home to galleries, studios, creative organisations and major events including the Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennale.
For visitors, the three-day programme offers a more personal way to experience that community. Instead of moving through a completed exhibition with little contact with the people behind it, they can enter the studios, ask questions and hear directly from the artists about how the work took shape.
The Intermix Residency Open Studio will run from July 28 to 30 at Studio I08 in JAX District, Diriyah. Visitors should check the Visual Arts Commission’s official channels for daily timings and access details before attending.
