Reef Loretto at World Expo, 2025

At World Expo 2025, DDX produced a six-month cultural programme within the Saudi Arabia Pavilion, presenting contemporary Saudi musicians through performances, residencies and site-responsive commissions. As part of this programme, Saudi-American artist Reef Loretto premiered Explorations of Time, a new audiovisual work.

Conceived as an immersive listening and viewing experience, Explorations of Time invited audiences to reflect on the connections between past, present and future. Through sound, image and performance, the work explored themes of timelessness, ancestral knowledge and the elemental forces of nature, drawing inspiration from wind, water and the shifting landscapes of the Red Sea.

Developed during a two-week residency, the piece emerged through an organic, improvisational collaboration between Saudi and Japanese artists. Bringing together traditional influences and contemporary techniques, the residency explored the intersection of heritage, environment and modern music practice, resulting in a work shaped as much by process as by performance.

Beyond its premiere within the Pavilion, Explorations of Time extended into a series of pop-up performances in the Pavilion’s Courtyard and across other stages throughout the Expo site. Reef also collaborated with a multicultural group of musicians, allowing the work to move across different settings and connect with diverse audiences.