If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, it is the job of an artist to share that beauty to a wider audience. That is very much the mindset of photographer and cultural curator Moath Alofi.
Having set up his own artistic studio Al-Mthba, Alofi’s conceptual photography projects are known for showcasing a different side of the Kingdom that is often shown.
The Medina-born creative’s work has been exhibited both locally and internationally, with notable projects including The Last Tashahhud (2017), a series of photos focused on deserted mosques across the Kingdom; and People of Pangaea (2018), a collection of images capturing an aerial view of the ancient anthropological sites of Saudi Arabia.
Alofi’s status has been growing in importance within the Kingdom’s cultural circles. Thanks to his previous work as Head of the Cultural Programme at the Medina Development Authority, and now his role as Exhibition and Program Manager at Diriyah Gate Development Authority in Riyadh, he has been trusted to elevate the cultural movement in the country, by creating exhibitions, workshops and educational artistic programs.
Recently his work attracted the attention of the French luxury Maison, Cartier, who selected Alofi to be the regional face of its campaign for its iconic timepiece, Tank de Cartier. The campaign celebrates four notable photographers from around the world for their cultural contributions. Esquire Saudi speaks to Alofi about is process:
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ESQ: Why is it that photography is medium that your creative expression takes?
Moath Alofi: I see photography as a way to capture your thoughts. My brain is constantly whirring, and sometimes I wish I could freeze a specific thought so that it can develop properly. I’ve always found photography to be a very fast and strong medium to help deliver that capturing of an idea.
ESQ: You’ve previously described yourself as a photographer and a ‘researcher’. What do you mean by a ‘researcher’?
MA: When I was younger I moved away from my home city of Medina and lived abroad for 10 years. When I returned to Saudi, I experienced a bit of a culture shock with regards to my own culture. It was like I was seeing my culture through a new perspective and I started to document it. I started doing research into lots of different elements. I research the local food, the local architecture, the economy of the city or region, all the time I was digging deeper always thinking “how can I deliver a wider understanding on the city of Medina.”
One of my work’s central pillars is research, and so I ended up doing some research projects for the likes of McKinsey, PwC and even the Ministry of Culture. I try to help people to better understanding our region and our country, and at the same time to really deliver the true essence of the local content, because we have the content that we know ourselves needs to be delivered through us.
ESQ: What was it about the Medina region that you wished to share with others?
MO: My personal message as an artist is to give back to society. Sharing the things I know, the things I’ve seen – the Madina Arts Centre was a very good opportunity to give back to the culture and help society.
I am constantly working to help people better understand our region and our country. In order to do that it is important for us to communicate differently, and help both expose showcase local talent, but also to let the local culture know what is out there internationally. We were always working to help achieve Vision 2030, with regards to the development of quality of life and creating different opportunities within culture and art.
In the Medina community I often encouraged experimentation, as I really wanted them to see the wider perspective for the arts and for artists to work with. I believe it was our role to deliver the true essence of ‘local content’, because the community knows the content it has and that story can only be delivered through us.
ESQ: You mentioned before that you lived aboard for a decade. What was it that brought you back?
MO: A sense of belonging. Definitely. This is my land and I am rooted in the desert. I enjoyed my time abroad. It was full of beautiful places, good people and different cultures, but there was something about this land that was pulling me back home.