NOOR RIYADH 2025
In the Blink of an Eye illuminates Noor Riyadh 2025, casting a vibrant constellation of light art across the city’s heart and along the sleek, modern lines of its new metro system.
This edition of the festival celebrates Riyadh’s rapid transformation. Its embrace of science, technology, and innovation. The narrative unfolds in two interwoven paths: in the historic center, light-based artworks converse with ancient architecture, bridging the city’s rich cultural heritage with its energetic present. In contrast, the metro stations radiate a pulse of modernity, animated by installations that reflect the pace and rhythm of urban life.
Light, evocative of movement and speed, serves as both medium and message in this year’s edition of Noor Riyadh. Kinetic sculptures and responsive installations trace the flow of people, visualizing connectivity and interaction. This year’s bold works capture Riyadh’s spirit of continuous transformation, embodying a city that is constantly in motion.
The festival invites visitors on a journey between eras, a place where tradition meets transformation. It is a metaphor for Riyadh’s broader trajectory: honoring the past while fearlessly looking ahead. Artists from around the world push the boundaries of light, using cutting-edge technology to spark reflection on the relationship between humanity, innovation, and urban change.
In the Blink of an Eye celebrates Riyadh
Sparkling glint of Noor Riyadh 2025 in Venice
Fondazione Querini Stampalia
19 Oct – 23 Nov 2025
Noor Riyadh and the Fondazione Querini Stampalia present a capsule exhibition during the Venice Architecture Biennale, offering an international preview of the upcoming Noor Riyadh Festival 2025, the world’s largest light art festival.
The exhibition is curated under the theme “In the Blink of an Eye” and reflects the pace of change in Riyadh as well as the growing role of cultural development in the city’s transformation. The capsule exhibition is curated by Li Zhenhua and Sara Almutlaq, with the support of this year’s festival Curatorial Advisory Lead, Mami Kataoka.
The exhibition is installed in the spaces designed by Carlo Scarpa at the Fondazione Querini Stampalia. Scarpa’s architectural intervention, which accommodates Venice’s periodic flooding, provides a distinct context for the presentation. In parallel, Noor Riyadh 2025 emphasizes the city’s current transformation and its ambition to serve as a global platform for artistic and cultural exchange.