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WEKU
WEKU
Olivia Hampton

Saudi Arabia's art scene is exploding, but who benefits?

Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman Andy Warhol Leila Fadel Entertainment Riyadh United States Reprieve UNESCO
A Saudi man visits an arts exhibition by late US artist Andy Warhol at the Maraya concert hall in the ruins of AlUla, a UNESCO World Heritage site in northwestern Saudi Arabia, on February 19, 2023. (AFP via Getty Images)

The Saudi government is considered one of the most conservative and repressive in the world, with strict gender-based laws and an expansive death penalty. But now, a country that once had a decades-long ban on movie theaters has morphed into a regional hub for arts and entertainment.

A general view during MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM 2021 on December 18, 2021 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Neville Hopwood/Getty Images for MDLBEAST SOUNDS)
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