Submerged Tales is a series of programmes accompanying the ongoing exhibition Salt-Kissed: Of the Vessels that have Sailed the Red Sea at Hayy Jameel, Jeddah. These programmes explore the hidden, unheard, and unspoken histories and processes of the Red Sea region. Through artist discussions, screenings, and workshops, the programs revisit the exhibition’s subthemes, framing the Red Sea as a site of cultural and historical difference.

On the Margins of Salt-Kissed
Speakers: Ahmed Alaqra and Abed Shabane
October 23
Online

Curators of ‘Salt-Kissed’, Ahmed Alaqra and Abdulrahman Abed Shabane, open a dialogue on the peripheral aspects of the exhibition—highlighting subthemes that, while not prominently featured, are still present in the show. These discussions expand the exhibition’s narrative and the history of the Red Sea beyond the displayed artworks, offering insight into Ahmed and Abed’s methodological approach to curating the exhibition.

Ruba Al-Sweel: HOST and First Phone
Speakers: Ahmed Alaqra and Ruba Al-Sweel
October 23
Online

Exhibited artist Ruba Al-Sweel’s work explores the realities of everyday life told from the vantage point of screen space and platform algorithms. Join us for an online screening of Ruba’s recent video-essays HOST and FIRST PHONE, followed by a talk with curator Ahmed Alaqra.

Submerged Sonics
Speaker: Ahmed Alaqra
October 24
Gallery 2, Hayy Arts

Submerged Sonics is a listening session within the ‘Salt-Kissed’ exhibition space, featuring field recordings from various locations around Jeddah. It is designed to create new connections with the city and spark fresh dialogues with the artworks in ‘Salt-Kissed’. Inspired by FREQ_WAVE: MIXER #1: NORTH SEA TO RED SEA (2020), curated by Carl Michael von Hausswolff, this session uses sound frequencies to capture the subtle, hidden exchanges between Jeddah and the sea, offering a unique auditory exploration of the city’s relationship with its surrounding waters.

Watery Archives
Speaker: Huda Tayob
October 24
Project Space

Watery Archives by exhibited artist Huda Tayob reframes the ocean and its coasts as sites of spatial and temporal continuity through the lens of colonial film archives. In a workshop with the artist, participants will build on Mahmoud Darwish’s poem Memory for Forgetfulness to rethink archival practices as acts of labor, care, and resistance. Participants are invited to engage with their own personal archival fragments of the Red Sea, to use them as prompts for redrawing and remapping histories of the Red Sea.