The Libyan princess and arts patron is making her way back to Hong Kong post pandemic and hosting ‘The ReStart Art Club’ party during Art Basel. She speaks to Tatler about community, connection and why she’ll never get on Instagram
Princess Alia Al-Senussi is a busy woman. At the time of this interview, she had flown from Saudi Arabia to France, pit-stopped in the UK—where our video call took place—then jetted off to Sweden, ahead of her final stop in Hong Kong for Art Basel. Phew.
As an active member of the contemporary art world, focusing on cultural strategy and patronage systems, Princess Alia has served as a representative for Art Basel UK, and Middle East and North Africa (MENA) for over a decade, and is also currently the senior advisor of international outreach for Art Basel. In 2019, she was appointed senior advisor to the Ministry of Culture of Saudi Arabia, where she has spent the last four years focusing on developing international partnerships while working on a range of projects, including the Diriyah Biennale Foundation. Princess Alia is a member of countless respected art institutions, including Tate Modern Advisory Council in London and the UCCA Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing. She continues to serve as a founding member of the Tate’s Acquisitions Committee for the Middle East and North Africa, the Middle East Circle of the Guggenheim, and as a member of the Serpentine Future Contemporaries.
Though her credentials make it amply clear that she’s a who’s who of contemporary art, to Princess Alia, she’s essentially just a “connector of people”. Born to an American mother and Libyan father (a member of the ruling Al-Senussi family that was expelled from Libya in 1969 following the coup led by Muammar Gaddafi), Al-Senussi is proud of her Middle Eastern heritage and works to bridge the gap between cultures through her work. “It’s hard to describe what I do. I’m not a curator, gallerist or an art dealer. I’m somebody who has made it their profession to bring people together”, she says.
She speaks to Tatler ahead of her trip to Hong Kong and shares what she’s most looking forward to at this year’s event.
How did you first get involved in the arts?
My love for the arts began with my first job working in Siwa, Egypt [a three-month project hosted by Albion Gallery which brought artists to create works in Siwa]. This project gave me an epiphany of how contemporary art and culture can transform societies and change the way we see each other. That is pre-dated by my love of culture, in general. I have always been exposed to contemporary art. My parents took me to museums [as a child], and I had been to the Tate Modern when Icelandic-Danish artist Olafur Eliasson’s incredible Weather Project installation was being exhibited [which drew more than two million people to the museum’s Turbine Hall in 2003]. It completely transformed the way we interacted with art, museums and institutions. His work brought a sense of comfort to people, as they could lie down or eat their lunch [by it]. [Because of it] the museum was no longer this ‘higher institution’, untouchable to the masses.
My mother is American, from a small town in Minnesota and my father is from this incredibly rich historical family. Having to go into exile in Egypt when I was younger influenced how I interacted with both sides of my family and culture. I have always been fascinated by this even at university where I studied political science, international relations and Middle Eastern studies. I have always been interested in the way in which culture plays a part in society.
What draws you to Hong Kong?
I first came to Hong Kong on a family vacation in 2008. I just loved the city from the moment I came here. I loved the skyline, the food, the energy—Hong Kong is a city that spoke to me. I have this wonderful and cosmopolitan group of friends here. [My ReStart Art Club co-host] Dino [Sadhwani] and [Art Bureau co-founder] Jonathan Cheung are some of my best friends. There is a strong sense of affection between my friends and I here. The more I worked in the art world, the more I met people from Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong. My Arab friends used to always say:
“Alia, isn’t Asia so different [from the Arab world?]”. It’s not! There is such a similarly between how family structures and friendships work. There is a true sense of community in Hong Kong and mutual respect for all. I missed Hong Kong and Asia deeply [during the pandemic]. It was so sad for me not to be able to return for so long.
How did you and Dino Sadhwani first meet?
We have a mutual best friend Indoo Sella di Monteluce, who is one of our committee members. His parents and my parents were very good friends. Indoo and I had done the annual Tate’s Young Patrons party together in London for six years. When he and I came to Hong Kong, we met Dino. This was 13 years ago. We became fast friends. Later, Dino wanted to do something to celebrate the first year of Art Basel in Hong Kong. He asked if I wanted to throw a party. I said absolutely [yes], but only if it was for a reason and for a purpose. We started talking to Michael Govan [CEO of LACMA], and he wanted to do more in Asia. Then came the UCCA. We were bringing together all these wonderful people and institutions together to transform communities around the world.
Why do you think your partnership with Dino works so well?
We are on the same wavelength. He’s an incredibly generous and wonderful co-host and collaborator. He’s also very straight-forward. If we don’t like something, we can be very honest with each other. He is an incredibly hard worker and understands, just like I do, the importance of coming together, celebrating Hong Kong and what an art moment can do for a city and community.
What was the inspiration behind the name ‘The ReStart Art Club’?
Community. It’s the reason why we wanted to extend the party [to co-chairs and committee members]. This year, it’s about ‘restarting’. We thought it was important to bring in our dear local friends and people from the wider region to celebrate everyone coming together. Friends from Seoul, mainland China, the Middle East, India and the UK are flying in. The whole week is going to be about reconnecting. To be able to come together for a purpose [is great].
How did you and Dino go about picking your host chairs and committee members this year?
We wanted it to be about the local community. The five host chairs are K11 Group founder Adrian Cheng; vice-chair of M+ museum Alan Lau; LACMA board of trustee member Eva Chow; LACMA CEO Michael Govan; and director and CEO of UCCA Center for Contemporary Art Philip Tinari. Philip and Michael have been our collaborators for years. Adrian is a pillar of the local community. Alan Lau is a tireless advocate for [art] institutions and is the chair of every Asian art council there is (laughs).
Like him, I am a big believer in the institutional art world and what museums can do to educate and cement an artistic community in a city. We wanted some representation of M+ museum there, as it’s such an important moment for them and for the world. Having Alan just made sense. M+ museum really is the centre of the Asian art world.
Finally, Eva, I just love. It made sense to have someone who could represent Korea. She’s also a tireless advocate for LACMA and she truly understands what a party moment can do for a city.
How did your collaboration with Adrian Cheng’s K11 Foundation come about?
We’ve known each other a long time and have lots of mutual friends. I know the artists and gallerists that he collaborates with. We’ve been talking about doing something together for a long time. I didn’t think it would be on this scale though (laughs).
What are you most looking forward to about Art Basel this year?
The community. I work for Art Basel and I strongly believe in what they do: supporting artists, the art ecosystem and the cultural community. I believe [the platform] really helped people with their mental health struggles during Covid-19. I remember joining many zooms, online viewing rooms and talks [during the height of the pandemic], and there was such a big community of people around the world coming together. Art Basel was very helpful to me during periods of sorrow and despair.
Your parties are often touted as the “must-attend” events of the season. Do you ever feel pressure to outdo yourself?
We work hard at this and it’s something Dino takes very seriously. He loves working with creatives to produce these extraordinary events. The actual act of producing an event is one that I have grown to deeply respect and understand. These event producers are curating an entire moment. Of course, we want this year to be better than any [previous] year, but as long as people are genuinely there to celebrate each other, galleries, artists, the community and the reopening of Hong Kong—we’re happy.
What can partygoers expect at this year’s event?
You can expect to be transported to a different world. Come with an open mind, wanting to play and to have an adventure. We want people to see the different performances and artistry that’s gone into it. It’s about celebrating Hong Kong and its artistic community. It’ll be a really fun party, yes, but it’s truly about bringing people together.
Finally, your friends often joke that you need to up your social media presence and often use the hashtag #aliagetinstagram online. How have you managed to stay off social media all this time and can we expect a personal page soon?
I am off the grid. People often say that I do so much and that I could use my platform to educate others in the community. But I’m very active and responsive on WhatsApp and email. I’m extremely approachable—but the pressure of being on social media is one step too far for me.