And All That Is In Between – Islamic Arts Biennale 2025

And All That Is In Between, the Islamic Arts Biennale 2025, featured over 500 Islamic art objects loaned from over 30 of the world's leading institutions of Islamic arts, alongside 32 contemporary artworks by local and international artists, most of them newly commissioned for the occasion. Led by Artistic Directors Julian Raby, Amin Jaffer, and Abdul Rahman Azzam, with Saudi artist Muhannad Shono as Curator of Contemporary Art, this second edition of the Biennale offers insights into the ways cultures from around the world interact and endure. The title is part of a verse that appears several times in the Quran: "And God created the Heavens and the Earth and all that is in between."
The Islamic Arts Biennale takes place at the Western Hajj Terminal of King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, a city that for centuries has represented a junction point for cultural exchange and a venue that acts as a port of entry for millions of pilgrims on their journey to Makkah and Madinah. By juxtaposing historical objects from Islamic cultures with contemporary art, the Biennale explores how faith is experienced, expressed, and celebrated across time through feeling, thinking, and making.
This comprehensive and richly illustrated catalogue expands on the curatorial narratives and frameworks in detail, thoroughly documenting all the displayed objects, as well as the contemporary artworks.