Manal Al Dowayan was born and raised in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Over the course of her education, she partook in a range of courses in differing art institutions in Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Bahrain and London. In 2009 she was a resident artist at the Delfina Foundation in London and attended the Clore Leadership program. In 2010 she was a resident artist at Cuadro Fine Art Gallery in Dubai, and 2011 she was a resident artist/intern at The Townhouse Gallery in Egypt. She is currently part of the British Council International Cultural Leaders program.

Al Dowayan has participated in numerous touring group exhibitions including the British Council’s Common Ground project in 2006, the Saudi-Italian artist exchange, Nawafith (2007/09), Freedom to Create (2011), and Edge of Arabia (2008-11). Manal has also exhibited regionally and internationally, in Spain, Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Germany, Turkey, Korea, India, Bahrain, the UK, USA, UAE and Saudi Arabia. She won an international call for artists for the Imagining Ourselves anthology in 2003, which was managed by the International Museum of Women in San Francisco. Her photograph Pointing to the Future was exhibited in New York at the 49th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in 2005. Al Dowayan also exhibited her work during the 2009 and 2011 Venice Biennale and the 2010 Berlin Biennale and Contemporary Istanbul.

Her artworks are part of the permanent collections of the British Museum, the Jordan National Museum of Fine Art, the Abdul Latif Jamil Foundation, the Delfina Foundation in London, the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH), the Nadour Foundation in Germany, and the Barjeel Foundation in Sharjah. Manal is represented by Cuadro Fine Art Gallery in Dubai.

This year she has had seven major exhibits:

1. 1.1/2011 Look Beyond, at the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID), Vienna, Austria
   

2. 2.3/2011 Edge of Arabia: Terminal, During Art Dubai, Dubai, UAE
   In a highly conceptual and experiential exhibition, TERMINAL addresses the concept of travel, bureaucracy, privacy and identity, creating a pop-­up exhibition in an abandoned ground-­floor space in the DIFC. Guiding the viewer through a real-­life airport experience, from check-­in, through security, and on towards the-­globalised world.
   Edge of Arabia, a pioneering travelling exhibition that has shed new light on the largely unknown contemporary art culture of Saudi Arabia, is coming to Dubai this March during the Sharjah Biennial and in partnership with Art Dubai, and under the global tour sponsorship of ALJ Community Initiatives.
   

3. 3.3/2011 Right Here Right Now, Cuadro Gallery, Dubai, UAE
   The six artists in Right Here, Right Now share the experience of having a transnational identity. It is a challenge to distill elements of their persona as being truly drawn from their countries of origin, having been distanced from them through exile, globalization or both. Their self-expression is therefore one focused on universal themes, such as alienation, vulnerability and personal space.
   Although in a secondary role, the attachment to a homeland filters through the works. Landscapes and cityscapes of Saudi Arabia and Turkey are the canvas for Manal Al Dowayan and Ali Taptik, respectively.
   The artists reinvent elements drawn from their countries of origin in a contemporary style, resulting in diluted versions of the originals. Right Here, Right Now leaves one questioning, does the phenomenon of a transnational identity help us connect with a globalized culture, or does it alienate one further? Is the sense of social cohesion and belonging lost through this abstraction?
   

4. 4.7/2011 Freedom to Create, New York, Mumbai, and Bosnia and Herzegovina
   Freedom to Create Exhibitions celebrates the power of the creative arts to heal, inspire and build social capital. It is is a physical manifestation of how creativity is being used to drive social change around the world. Each year, a selection of highly commended entries for the Freedom to Create Prize are chosen for a touring exhibition, which travels across the world. The Exhibition aims to bring messages of courage, creativity, unity, reconciliation and hope from around the world to new audiences. It addresses the importance of empowering dreams to transform lives, and celebrates the power of art to confront barriers to prosperity. Touring exhibition will last throughout 2011.
   

5. 5.5/2011 The Bravery of Being Out of Range, Athr Gallery, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
   The defining ethics in our modern society have whitewashed any authenticity and individuality, creating an unyielding want for more of the same. This global system of intertwining networks creates a double-edged sword. Artworks of 11 artists explore this concept at Athr Gallery in Jeddah.
   

6. 6.6/2011 The Future of a Promise, during Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy
   The Future of a Promise will be the largest Pan-Arab show of contemporary art at the 54th International Art Exhibition – la Biennale di Venezia. From Tunisia all the way to Saudi Arabia, this landmark exhibition brings together more than twenty-five recent works and commissions by some of the foremost artists from the Arab world.
   

7. 7.9/2011 Metropolis: City Life in the Urban Age at Noorderlicht Festival, Groningen, Netherlands
   Since the beginning of the 21st century, more than half of the world's population are living in cities. Metropolis:­ City Life in the Urban Age shows the many faces of the modern city. Noorderlicht organizes its 18th International Photofestival, in which diverse photographic genres and series are welded into a thematic narrative. Opening September 11 to October 9, 2011 in Groningen, Netherlands.
   Festival Information - www.noorderlicht.com
   

8. 8. 9-10/2011 RESIDENCY AT THE TOWNHOUSE GALLERY
   I am currently on a residency/internship at The Townhouse Gallery in Cairo, Egypt until the end of October of 2011. Follow my adventures and activities during this time on twitter
   http://www.thetownhousegallery.com
   

9. 9. 9/2011 THE ARTIST AND THE PARADOX OF HISTORY SEMINAR AT CICA
   ”But today is so much more interesting than yesterday” is the keynote speech given by Manal AlDowayan during The Artist and The Paradox of History Seminar hosted at the Ateneum Art Museum in Helsinki. The CICA project is a joint initiative by three pioneering artistic research clusters and four central museums and art centers in Finland, Sweden and Great Britain. Find the seminar program here.
   http://changingidentities.eu/