Into Focus: Saudi

The largest country on the Arabian Peninsula, home to ancient ruins and millennia-old tombs, Saudi has deep historic roots. But this is a country of contrast, with bustling cosmopolitan art and dining scenes, forward-facing design and architecture and ambitions to build the world’s tallest skyscraper.

London based Holly-Marie Cato has worked across Morocco and shot a documentary in Jordan, heard friends describe trips to Mecca, but Saudi itself remained unfamiliar. Curiosity pulled her in.

A shifting city

Holly-Marie fell for Jeddah fast. “It’s its own place. It has its own fabric, its own feeling.” By the ocean, it felt to her like Los Angeles, with the relaxed atmosphere and people cycling along the boardwalks. At sunset, as the temperature cooled, the restaurants started to fill up. Ever with her photographer’s lens, Holly-Marie was captivated by the fading light. “You’ve got this blue hour where it’s almost night but there’s still the glow from the horizon. It’s so beautiful.”

By contrast, the soul of the city is in Historic Jeddah the UNESCO World Heritage old town, where ornate wooden balconies lean over narrow alleys like elders deep in conversation. Craftsmanship can be seen on every corner: one shop making handmade soap and perfume; another, jewel-like textiles. Holly-Marie met Nohar and Hassan, two artisans reviving centuries-old woodworking traditions. They transformed teak into trays, carving motifs that echoed the ancient balconies above them. “For a woman to have that craft, you know, and now they’re teaching it to other people, I thought that was quite beautiful.”

In the market, Holly-Marie was caught up in a whirl of saffron, cardamom and cloves. “I took a photo of one vendor and suddenly everyone wanted one - inviting me to their stalls, offering spices and sweets, eager to share.” They encouraged her to stop, to sit down, to drink their coffee. “I thought London knew coffee,” Holly-Marie laughed. “I thought Italy knew coffee. But in Jeddah, I had the best Americano of my life.” [and it was in Saudi’s traditional coffee served] in those tiny half-filled cups, Holly-Marie began to understand, “No one’s in a rush. There’s a wonderful pace to life here.”

A vision in action

Riyadh stunned Holly-Marie with its futuristic ambition. Amid the clean lines of the financial district, the King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) Metro Station, designed by the late Zaha Hadid, stopped Holly-Marie in her tracks. “From the outside, its aquatic bulbous shape felt almost alive amongst all the rigid buildings.” Inside, the sci-fi-like atrium struck her as otherworldly - warm, organic, almost womb-like - with an Alexander Calder sculpture turning in slow motion. She remembers thinking, “How is this here? How did this place become a canvas for the world’s most imaginative architects?”

Ancient compass

Diriyah, the birthplace of the Saudi state, on the outskirts of Riyadh, is a striking testament to the history of the country. Restored and revived, its architecture echoes life from centuries past. For Holly-Marie though, nothing compared to AlUla. Like Diriyah, the old town was exceptionally well preserved, but it was the desert that transformed her understanding of the country. When her guide Omar told her that Al-Gharameel, where they were heading to, is described by some as the “darkest place on Earth,” Holly-Marie didn’t quite believe it, until the Milky Way flooded the sky. He pointed out constellations and told her the Saudi names for the stars that had been used for thousands of years to navigate across the sand.

A place that says come in

What stayed with Holly-Marie most was the generosity. Everywhere, coffee and dates freely offered, conversations started, doors held wide. “I’m a Black woman with blonde hair, no headscarf, and not once did I feel pressure to fit in. I felt welcomed - clearly a foreigner, clearly invited to enjoy myself.” That’s the heart of Saudi right now: a place eager to share itself, ready to be known and deeply grounded in hospitality that feels ancient, instinctive and sincere.

“I arrived knowing very little. I left feeling like I’d been embraced - by cities, by people, by the desert night itself.”