The second edition of the Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 in Jeddah presents AlMidhallah (The Canopy) as one of its sections, transforming the outdoor spaces of the Biennale into an immersive exploration of the Islamic garden. Curated by Muhannad Shono and a team of curators this section is set beneath the iconic tent-like structure of the Western Hajj Terminal at King Abdulaziz Airport, a site of architectural and cultural significance, AlMidhallah reimagines the garden as a regenerative space for reflection, knowledge, and community.
Designed by Gordon Bunshaft and Fazlur Khan for Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the Western Hajj Terminal received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1983. Functioning as a gateway for millions of pilgrims en route to Makkah for Hajj and Umrah, the structure’s vast, tented form evokes the traditional nomadic architecture of the Arabian Peninsula. Within this unique environment, AlMidhallah serves as a conceptual and spiritual garden, offering visitors a meditative journey through interconnected artistic installations.
AlMidhallah opens new pathways for exploring Islamic artistic traditions, underscoring the Biennale’s broader theme of wama bainahuma—All that Lies in Between. Gardens have long held a central place in Islamic thought, symbolising paradise and serving as spaces for intellectual discourse, spiritual rejuvenation, and communal gatherings. The Qur’anic vision of paradise as a garden (janna) with flowing rivers, lush vegetation, and eternal tranquillity finds its echoes in historical Islamic garden designs, such as the Persian pardēz (walled garden) and the geometric charbagh layout.
The curators of AlMidhallah expand on this tradition, presenting the garden not only as a historical or aesthetic motif but as a living entity—a space where the natural and the man-made, the earthly and the spiritual, converge. Drawing inspiration from Indian scholar and activist Vandana Shiva’s concept of ecological space, the installations in AlMidhallah explore the entanglements between human and non-human life, sustainability, and memory. ‘When I joined the Diriyah Biennale team, I was the only one who hadn’t attended the first edition, and I felt disadvantaged. I proposed the idea of unifying the outdoor works under the theme of ‘the garden.’ The garden is a place of beauty, escape, and community—a reflection of nature’s spiritual significance in Islamic culture. It also serves as a space for transformation, knowledge, contemplation, and congregation. We divided the garden into four quadrants, each embodying one of these concepts, and invited artists to interpret ‘all that is in between’ through this lens.” Explains Dr. Amin Jaffer
Structured around the four-part charbagh model, AlMidhallah is divided into thematic quadrants, each addressing a different aspect of the garden as a conceptual and interactive space.
Gateway & Pathway: Crossing Thresholds
This quadrant introduces the garden as a site of transition, both physical and metaphorical. Installations here reflect personal and collective journeys, exploring themes of passage and transformation. Highlights include:
Bilal Allaf’s 24-hour filmed performance What I Heard in the Valley, reenacts the story of Hajar’s search for water, invoking faith and perseverance.
Raya Kassisieh’s Heavy Petals, a sculptural installation of steel roses that merges the fragility of memory with the resilience of metal, inspired by the floral motifs in her late grandmother’s home.
Lúcia Koch’s Air Temperature is an immersive veil of translucent textiles that responds to light and movement, creating an ever-changing passageway between interior and exterior spaces.
Understanding & Knowledge: The Botanical and the Scientific
This section investigates the medicinal and ecological significance of plants, as well as the broader scientific knowledge embedded in Islamic traditions. Key works include:
Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige’s I Was Looking at the Garden When I Saw the Sky (Jeddah), a suspended hydroponic garden that reveals the archaeology of Jeddah’s subsoil, uncovering histories of migration and transformation. Khalil Joreige addresses the work: ‘The architecture of the space played a crucial role in shaping the concept of our work. The scale and positioning of the space were intimidating at first, but it helped bring our ideas into focus. We initially saw the gardens as soulless and disconnected from the environment, almost like hydroponic agriculture—artificial and detached. So, we decided to suspend the garden, which turned it into a metaphor for a lost paradise, a jungle of sorts. We wanted to address the themes of destruction, construction, and regeneration.’ Joana Hadjithomas continues: ‘Lifting the garden was not just a physical act—it was symbolic. We wanted to reveal what lies beneath, things that the human eye can’t perceive. By elevating the garden, we exposed the layers of sedimentation, traces, and remains beneath us, revealing a “column of time.” Working with archaeologists, we unearthed small traces—oxidised coins, fossils, and small bones—things that are barely noticeable but carry a lot of historical weight. This act of uncovering these microscopic traces reflects how we see time, memory, and regeneration.’
Tamara Kalo’s The Optics of a Rising Sun, a contemporary adaptation of Ibn Al-Haytham’s camera obscura, plays with perception and the symbolic relationship between light and knowledge.
Ala Younis’s Cut Flowers, is a greenhouse installation tracing the history of Gaza’s once-thriving flower export industry, reflecting on economic collapse and environmental resilience.
Contemplation & Rejuvenation: The Garden as a Place of Healing
This quadrant explores the meditative and restorative qualities of gardens, integrating artistic interpretations of self-reflection, memory, and spiritual renewal. Featured works include:
Imran Qureshi’s Between Sacred Cities (Zubaydah Trail), is an installation inspired by traditional Pakistani weaving techniques. “I took imagery of water from Mecca and the green environment of Madinah and created this garden based on these elements taken from these two holy cities,” Qureshi explains. ‘Regarding the broader themes of the work, I often think of my training in miniature painting, which influenced the design of the layout. The red border around the garden, like in a manuscript or miniature painting, is a reference to that tradition. But this piece is more than a painting to observe from a distance—it’s a space to engage with, to walk through, to touch. Experiencing it up close changes your perception entirely.’
Hylozoic/Desires’ An Omniscience: The Sanctuary, a multisensory garden with plants that absorb radiation, accompanied by hand-dyed textiles and a musical composition evoking the movements of birds and air currents.
Takashi Kuribayashi’s Barrels, is an installation of empty oil barrels from which a tree emerges, questioning humanity’s reliance on natural resources and our connection to the land.
Congregation & Community: A Space for Encounter
The final quadrant presents the garden as a site of gathering, fostering cultural dialogue and shared experiences. Highlights include:
Slavs and Tatars’ Melon Mahallah, a typographic installation in the shape of the letter qaf (ق), references the Central Asian belief that winter melons bear prophetic messages, thus creating a space for collective reading and interpretation.
Asim Waqif’s Min Rukam is a towering bamboo structure that invites interaction through sound and movement, highlighting traditional craftsmanship and sustainability.
Nasser Alzayani’s Echoes of a Lost Spring, examines the disappearance of a natural spring in Bahrain. “The idea of care and attention is central. Like all of us, the works require time to truly be understood. You have to spend time in the space, reflect, and let the message unfold over time. I was also initially intimidated by the scale of the site. My piece is part of an ongoing series, and I wanted to retell the story of a natural spring in Bahrain, which has disappeared. The scale of the piece elevates the ground, creating a platform for the land itself to speak and tell its story.” Alzayani notes.
AlMidhallah is an evolving, participatory space where visitors become part of the landscape. The installations foster active engagement, whether through walking meditations, sensory experiences, or collective storytelling. “Dr. Amin and others mentioned that a garden is more than just a physical space. For me, it’s a spiritual garden, a bridge between nature and culture. Gardens carry collective memories, especially towards plants like rayhan (basil), which holds significant spiritual meaning in Islam. Gardens are not just physical spaces; they are gateways to memory and feelings. Everyone experiences gardens differently, but there’s a universal connection that we all share, especially when we look at plants across cultures and religions” explains artist Fatma Abdulhadi.
By merging historical interpretations with contemporary artistic interventions, AlMidhallah at the Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 offers a reimagining of the Islamic garden. It transforms the concept of paradise from a distant ideal into an experiential reality, emphasising its ecological, social, and spiritual dimensions.