Jeddah – July 2026
The sixth episode of the MENA TALKS podcast featured internationally acclaimed Saudi artist Shalimar Sharbatly in a compelling conversation that brought together the worlds of art and motorsports. Hosted by media presenter Maram Al Sheikh, the interview explored key milestones in Sharbatly’s artistic journey while unveiling her upcoming international projects and her pioneering vision of Moving Art, an artistic concept that has taken art beyond traditional gallery walls into everyday life.
As part of the podcast’s series dedicated to automobiles and motorsports, the episode highlighted Sharbatly’s unique creative experience, which has established her as one of the Arab world’s leading contemporary artists. Her works have been showcased at the Louvre Museum and exhibited in prestigious galleries and museums across Switzerland and Monaco, reinforcing her international reputation as a pioneer of contemporary art.
During the interview, Sharbatly reflected on the early years of her artistic career, describing her late father, Hassan Abbas Sharbatly, as her greatest source of inspiration. She credited him with instilling in her the values of generosity, honesty, and integrity, while acknowledging her mother, a graduate of the Faculty of Fine Arts, for discovering and nurturing her artistic talent from an early age.
She also shared memories of her childhood at Dar Al Hanan School in Jeddah, revealing that she was honored three times by the late Queen Effat between the ages of seven and ten in recognition of her exceptional artistic talent.
Sharbatly also revealed several upcoming international initiatives, including the establishment of Shalezm School in Venice, Italy, making her the first Arab visual artist to found an art school based on her own creative philosophy. The initiative aims to nurture emerging artistic talent and strengthen cultural dialogue between civilizations.
She further announced her participation in the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, where she will unveil a new body of work that marks a significant evolution in her artistic career. Moving beyond traditional painting, Sharbatly will introduce original sculptural creations featuring innovative concepts, distinctive designs, and unprecedented artistic details. She explained that she will hold a series of meetings with Biennale officials and curators to finalize the selection of the works that will represent this new artistic project, reflecting the evolution of her creative vision while presenting a contemporary Saudi artistic perspective at one of the world’s most prestigious art events.
Speaking about the origins of Moving Art, Sharbatly explained that the idea emerged when she decided to redesign her own car. What began as a personal experiment soon evolved into a comprehensive artistic movement that transformed luxury automobiles, electric motorcycles, fashion, and other unconventional surfaces into creative canvases, driven by her belief that art should exist among people rather than remain confined within gallery spaces.
Sharbatly emphasized that she was the first visual artist in the world to paint directly on automobiles, establishing a pioneering artistic movement known internationally as Moving Art. By merging fine art, design, and engineering, she transformed luxury vehicles into mobile works of art, introducing an entirely new relationship between artistic expression and movement.
She also stressed that art has become an increasingly influential force in the development of motorsports, noting that automobiles are no longer merely means of transportation or competition but have evolved into platforms for cultural and artistic expression. According to Sharbatly, this integration enhances the visual identity of international championships and major sporting events, attracts new audiences, and builds meaningful connections between culture, innovation, technology, and motorsport.
The episode also revisited key milestones in Sharbatly’s remarkable artistic career. Having shown exceptional talent from childhood, she became the youngest visual artist in the Arab world to hold a solo exhibition at the age of fifteen. Her international breakthrough came in 2006 in Paris, where she exhibited at the renowned Place du Tertre in Montmartre alongside internationally celebrated Egyptian artist Omar El Nagdi and Spanish artist Juan Ramirez, the artistic heir to Salvador Dalí. The exhibition received widespread international attention and marked the beginning of her global artistic recognition.
Her achievements continued with exhibitions and appearances at some of the world’s most prestigious cultural events, including the Louvre Museum and the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix, further cementing her status as the world’s first visual artist to transform automobiles into moving works of art. Through this groundbreaking fusion of art, design, and motorsports, Sharbatly has introduced an innovative artistic language while significantly enhancing the global presence of Saudi contemporary art.
