Often considered as the epitome of governance in line with Islamic value systems and modesty, Saudi Arabia, under the new leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been embracing modernization and liberal thinking while retaining its value at the core.
Slowly and steadily the Kingdom has been easing several restrictions that were in place to open up the Saudi economy to the world.
In line with its grander vision of Saudi Arabia 2030, the crown prince permitted Vogue Arabia, the regional edition of the famous US-based fashion magazine to conduct a fashion photoshoot with international supermodels.
The action is one of many that could be seen as an example of Saudi royalty’s adherence to allow non-Muslim in the kingdom to enjoy all the liberty they are afforded by their religious value systems while also endorsing co-existence of the native Islamic community with their traditional values.
The photoshoot which was titled ‘24 hours in Al Ula’, was facilitated at the Al-Ula UNESCO heritage site, some 300 kilometers away from the holy city of Madina. Such an action would have been unimaginable in the Kingdom previously due to strict rules of modesty.
The day-long glamorous photoshoot campaign for the New York-based label Mônot included Kate Moss, Mariacarla Boscono, Candice Swanepoel, Jourdan Dunn, Amber Valletta, Xiao Wen and Alek Wek.
As per the reports, the Lebanese designer Eli Mizrah who organized and directed the shoot had his first photo shoot in January 2020.
Al-Ula is termed as ‘world’s largest open-air museum’ for his carved up rock structures similar to Jordan’s Petra.
Acknowledging the commitment of his model, Eli Mizrahi said: “I persuaded the talent that they would recall this moment as something extra special. Kate Moss not only acted, but she was the first one on set at 5 A.M. and the last to leave.”
He also shared the outstanding images on his Instagram profile.
The photoshoot along with the widespread reforms in the entertainment industry and gender relations can be seen as a stepping stone on which Saudi Arabia transforms itself into a progressive global power without any traditional burdens which it had earlier.
