Desert X AlUla 2026 is back with a new edition of ambitious, site specific works installed directly in AlUla’s landscape. It is one of the headline moments of AlUla Arts Festival 2026 and a rare chance to experience contemporary art at full scale, outdoors, in dialogue with desert geology, light, and vastness.
Below is a complete, practical guide: dates, theme, tickets, how to visit, and a clear overview of the confirmed artist lineup.
Desert X AlUla 2026 at a glance
| What | Key info |
|---|---|
| Dates | 16 January to 28 February 2026 (desertx.org) |
| Opening hours | 10:30 to 18:00, last entry 17:00 (Experience AlUla) |
| Theme | Space Without Measure, inspired by Kahlil Gibran (desertx.org) |
| Artistic directors | Raneem Farsi (returning), Neville Wakefield (founding) (desertx.org) |
| Curators | Wejdan Reda and Zoé Whitley (desertx.org) |
| Ticket | General admission SAR 50, free for children under 12 (Experience AlUla) |
| Format | Open air, landscape based installations across multiple sites (desertx.org) |
What is Desert X AlUla, and why it matters
Desert X AlUla is an international open air exhibition commissioning artworks that respond to AlUla’s landscape and heritage. Rather than placing works in a white cube, it turns the desert into the exhibition architecture, which changes how you look, listen, navigate, and remember.
Since the first AlUla edition in 2020, Desert X AlUla has produced 50 commissions and some works from earlier editions have been acquired by the Royal Commission for AlUla, contributing to Arts AlUla’s evolving public art collection.
It also acts as a bridge toward AlUla’s future land art ecosystem, including Wadi AlFann, described as a planned large scale open air museum area.
Theme 2026: Space Without Measure
The 2026 edition is shaped by the curators’ theme Space Without Measure, inspired by the poetic vision of Kahlil Gibran. The key promise is not just “art in nature,” but artworks positioned as landmarks for reflection, guiding visitors through different facets of AlUla’s terrain, history, and imagination.
Expect works that play with scale, distance, silence, sound, and the feeling of being small inside something immense.
The confirmed artists of Desert X AlUla 2026
Desert X has confirmed 11 participating artists for the 2026 AlUla edition:
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Sara Abdu
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Mohammad Alfaraj
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Mohammed AlSaleem
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Tarek Atoui
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Bahraini Danish
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Maria Magdalena Campos Pons
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Agnes Denes
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Ibrahim El Salahi
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Basmah Felemban
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Vibha Galhotra
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Héctor Zamora
How to read this lineup, and what to look for on site
Desert X describes this edition as spanning a wide range of materials and approaches, including monumental kinetic sculpture and sound based work across the landscape.
A useful visitor mindset: you are not hunting “objects,” you are moving through a sequence of environments. Some works will be visible from far away and act like navigational anchors. Others will reveal themselves through sound, shadow, texture, or proximity.
Curators and leadership
Desert X confirmed the return of Raneem Farsi and Neville Wakefield as artistic directors for 2026, with the exhibition curated by Wejdan Reda and Zoé Whitley.
The official programme framing positions AlUla as a place of cross cultural exchange, with each commission conceived in direct dialogue with the landscape.
Tickets, access, and how to visit
Tickets and pricing
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General admission: SAR 50
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Children under 12: free
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Advance booking is preferred, walk ins welcome.
Opening hours and entry
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Daily opening: 10:30 to 18:00
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Last entry: 17:00
Sites and transport
Experience AlUla notes that Desert X AlUla is spread across two sites (main and satellite), with dedicated parking for each. General admission includes transport from the car park to the visitor centre, plus access to both the main and satellite areas.
Accessibility
Experience AlUla states the exhibition is not wheelchair or stroller accessible, so plan accordingly if mobility is a concern.
Best ways to experience it
The official event listing highlights multiple ways to visit: self guided on foot, via guided tours, or via open top car experiences.
My practical advice: if you care about photography, aim for early or late daylight when shadows stretch and the work “locks” into the landscape.
How to plan your trip around AlUla Arts Festival 2026
Desert X AlUla runs within the wider AlUla Arts Festival calendar, so it pairs well with talks, tours, and other art programming during the season.
If you are building a short itinerary, structure it like this:
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Day 1: orientation, first site, sunset timing
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Day 2: second site, revisit favorites, any talks or guided programming
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Day 3 (optional): deeper exploration, slower pacing, better photos, better notes
What collectors, curators, and content creators should pay attention to
For collectors and art professionals
Desert X AlUla has a track record of works entering the public art collection ecosystem in AlUla through acquisitions from earlier editions. That is a meaningful signal of institutional commitment to land art and public art legacies in the region.
For artists and curators
This edition is a case study in how curatorial themes translate into real world visitor journeys, and how site specific work performs under extreme environmental conditions.
For media and creators
Plan a narrative that is bigger than “cool sculptures in the desert.” Use the theme as your spine: perception, boundlessness, and human presence inside vast nature.
FAQ
When is Desert X AlUla 2026?
It runs from 16 January to 28 February 2026.
How much are tickets for Desert X AlUla 2026?
General admission starts at SAR 50, and it is free for children under 12.
What are the opening hours?
The event listing shows 10:30 to 18:00, with last entry at 17:00.
Who are the artists in Desert X AlUla 2026?
Desert X lists 11 artists, including Sara Abdu, Tarek Atoui, Maria Magdalena Campos Pons, Agnes Denes, Ibrahim El Salahi, and Héctor Zamora.
Where is it located?
Experience AlUla describes Desert X AlUla across two sites with main and satellite parking, within AlUla’s landscape, including Wadi AlFann as the broader setting reference.
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