Saudi artist Hawazin blends Gulf culture with video game aesthetics

Saudi artist Hawazin creates hazy, candy-colored paintings in her Brixton studio that explore identity and belonging.

She combines traditional Gulf imagery, such as figures in white thobes and ghutras, with the eerie, psychological landscapes of video games like Silent Hill and Resident Evil. Her work features figures with blurred faces that resemble low-resolution digital screenshots, set against vibrant pink skies and floral backgrounds that mimic digital stickers.

Hawazin moved from the United States to London to study art, eventually earning degrees from Camberwell College of Arts and the Royal College of Art. Since graduating in 2021, she has exhibited her work in cities including Berlin, Paris, and New York. She finds creative inspiration in music, anime, and films rather than traditional paintings, often capturing fleeting ideas on her phone during train or plane rides.

Her recent work, such as the painting Scent of My Reflection, uses familiar objects like perfume bottles and prayer beads to examine social structures and gender in the Gulf. Hawazin aims to encourage viewers to reflect on their own upbringing and memories through her art. She is currently preparing to release her first album and perform in Cairo while planning a new curatorial project.