Mona Khazindar, Saudi Shoura Council member

Mona Khazindar

Mona Khazindar has been a member of the Saudi Shoura Council since October.
She was director general of the Arab World Institute (IMA) in Paris from March 2011 until March 2014, and between 1987 and 2011 headed the department of contemporary art and photography at the institute’s museum where she focused on modern and contemporary Middle Eastern art.
From 2014 to 2015, she served as cultural adviser to the then Saudi Commission for Tourism and Heritage (SCTH).
Two years later, she founded Palette, an art and culture collective that organizes cultural projects and publishes art content. Palette was chosen by the International Contemporary Art Biennial of South America BienalSur to select and collaborate with five Saudi artists for her participation in BienalSur 2019.
In 2018, Khazindar was appointed by royal decree as a member of the Saudi General Authority for Culture and was nominated as member of the advisory board of the King Abdul Aziz Center for World Culture (Ithra).
During a career spanning 30 years, she has organized numerous successful exhibitions.
While working as a curator of exhibitions and departmental secretary at the IMA museum, Khazindar witnessed the emerging Arab art scene and encouraged and promoted the work of young Arab artists, helping to enrich their visual heritage by providing them with networking opportunities with artists in the West.
She has published several publications on Arab history, art, and culture, including her book “Visions from Abroad: Historical and Contemporary Representations of Saudi Arabia,” which was published in Arabic, English, and French.
Khazindar became the first Saudi to be awarded at the New Arab Woman Forum, during its fifth edition held in Beirut.
She was elected Woman of the Year in 2012 and 2013, and her name was featured among the 100 most powerful Arab women.
She gained a bachelor’s degree in French literature and art from The American University of Paris in 1982, a master’s degree in foreign languages from Sorbonne University in Paris in 1986, and a DEA in modern and contemporary history from the same institution in 1988.
She has attended many forums and conferences covering subject matters such as surrealism, cultural diplomacy, and modern art in the Arab world.
Khazindar is also a member of the advisory board of the Misk Foundation, the board of directors of the Saudi Museums Commission, and the Lebanon-based Arab Fund for Arts and Culture.