Ahmed Mater
Ahmed Mater was born in 1979 in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, and lives and works in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Among the most influential contemporary artists from Saudi Arabia, Mater has been integral to the establishment of the country’s artists on the global scene.
Trained as a medical doctor, Mater has been working primarily in photography and video since 2010. Focused on issues surrounding contemporary Islamic culture and its relationship to globalization and consumerism, his projects have included the documentation of the development of Mecca and abandoned desert cities. In 2003, Mater co-founded the nonprofit enterprise Edge of Arabia, which has become a major platform for international exhibitions of art from Saudi Arabia. Along with his wife, the artist Arwa al-Naemi, Mater runs the Studio Pharan salon in Jeddah.
