--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Saudi Arabia is so conservative. At first…" description: "\"Saudi Arabia is so conservative. At first there were photographs of women I took that I couldn't publish - of women without their abayas. So I started ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/olivia-arthur-57979_believe_saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first_2529123.jpg" --- # Saudi Arabia is so conservative. At first there were… ![“Saudi Arabia is so conservative. At first there were photographs of women I took that I couldn't publish - of women without their abayas. So I started writing out little anecdotes about things I couldn't photograph and wove it in with a more obscure picture and called it "moments that got away". I…” quote by Olivia Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/olivia-arthur-57979_believe_saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first_2529123.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/olivia-arthur-57979_believe_saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first_2529123.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/olivia-arthur-57979_believe_saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first_2529123.jpg) > “Saudi Arabia is so conservative. At first there were photographs of women I took that I couldn't publish - of women without their abayas. So I started writing out little anecdotes about things I couldn't photograph and wove it in with a more obscure picture and called it "moments that got away". I realised these worked as well as the photographs by themselves. There are a lot of photographers who feel the story is all in the photographs but I really believe in weaving in complementary words with the pictures.” [Olivia Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-arthur/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Combining brief narratives with photos overures storytelling when visual capture is limited. **In simple terms:** Words can complement photos when they’re restricted. Key Takeaway Blend text and image for fuller stories. Themes storytelling photography culture Mood thoughtful empathetic Type creative documentary When to use this quote - documenting women’s lives - social media posts - exhibitions Key Concepts visual ethics narrative layering Questions to Reflect On - How do you ensure consent in visual storytelling? - What other media could enhance these narratives? A Different Perspective Balancing respect for subjects with artistic expression can be challenging. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conservative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservative/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Photographer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographer/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [There are more pretty photographs of women than there are photographs of pretty women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-j-peter/there-are-more-pretty-photographs-of-women-than-there-are-photographs/) [Laurence J. Peter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-j-peter/) > [Photographers feel guilty that all they do for a living is press a button.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-warhol/photographers-feel-guilty-that-all-they-do-for-a-living-is-press-a/) [Andy Warhol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-warhol/) > [I admire a lot of photographers, but I feel very disconnected from them at the same time. I don't feel I employ any technique…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-hince/i-admire-a-lot-of-photographers-but-i-feel-very-disconnected-from/) [Jamie Hince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-hince/) > [Many photographers feel their client is the subject. My client is a woman in Kansas who reads Vogue. I'm trying to intrigue, stimulate, feed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-penn/many-photographers-feel-their-client-is-the-subject-my-client-is-a/) [Irving Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-penn/) > [Laugh, love, dream, strive, smile, feel, joy, look, try, fail, read, walk, search, share, help, work, fun, learn, retry, sweat, cry, rest, wait, fear,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-coleman/laugh-love-dream-strive-smile-feel-joy-look-try-fail-read-walk-search/) Steve Coleman > [Most photographers would feel a certain embarrassment in admitting publicly that they carried within them a sense of wonder, yet without it they would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-brandt/most-photographers-would-feel-a-certain-embarrassment-in-admitting/) [Bill Brandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-brandt/) > [I am not an artist, and I never intended to be one. I hope I have made some good photographs, but what I really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-capa/i-am-not-an-artist-and-i-never-intended-to-be-one-i-hope-i-have-made/) [Cornell Capa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-capa/) > [But empirically I've come to understand that my photographs really don't do any harm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jock-sturges/but-empirically-i-ve-come-to-understand-that-my-photographs-really/) [Jock Sturges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jock-sturges/) > [Photographs are perhaps the most mysterious of all the objects that make up, and thicken, the environment we recognize as modern. Photographs really are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/photographs-are-perhaps-the-most-mysterious-of-all-the-objects-that/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [My photographs are not really about photography. They are about editing. I use photography but they are all taken from the TV screen. Anybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-waters/my-photographs-are-not-really-about-photography-they-are-about/) [John Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-waters/) > [Photography seduces us into thinking we can believe photographs, whereas we can't really believe that a picture can tell us any kind of truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-jackson/photography-seduces-us-into-thinking-we-can-believe-photographs/) [Alison Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-jackson/) > [I have a lot of respect for these rock photographers. You realize that some of them were really led into the inner circles of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-fleetwood/i-have-a-lot-of-respect-for-these-rock-photographers-you-realize-that/) [Mick Fleetwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-fleetwood/) > [You have to decide where the line is in such a complicated place like Saudi Arabia. I was so confused by the place -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/you-have-to-decide-where-the-line-is-in-such-a-complicated-place-like/) [Olivia Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-arthur/) > [America is the Saudi Arabia of coal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/america-is-the-saudi-arabia-of-coal/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [You know, in Saudi Arabia, you're innocent until proven Jewish. Female. Guilty! They're guilty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/you-know-in-saudi-arabia-you-re-innocent-until-proven-jewish-female/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) ## More by Olivia Arthur > [You have to decide where the line is in such a complicated place like Saudi Arabia. I was so confused by the place -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/you-have-to-decide-where-the-line-is-in-such-a-complicated-place-like/) [Olivia Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-arthur/) > [When I first asked to take pictures of women at their homes, I was using my formal camera and I struggled to get the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/when-i-first-asked-to-take-pictures-of-women-at-their-homes-i-was/) [Olivia Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-arthur/) > [Photojournalism is photography with more story telling. A single image can be amazing and dramatic. I started out shooting individual images, but I found…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/photojournalism-is-photography-with-more-story-telling-a-single-image/) [Olivia Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-arthur/) > [At the beginning of my career, a more senior photographer told me to shoot stories on women and I didn't want to. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/at-the-beginning-of-my-career-a-more-senior-photographer-told-me-to/) [Olivia Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-arthur/) > [Photography is about being patient. I'm quiet, I watch the situation. I let things happen and photograph them when they happen; that's my approach,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/photography-is-about-being-patient-i-m-quiet-i-watch-the-situation-i/) [Olivia Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-arthur/) [Explore all 6 Olivia Arthur quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-arthur/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Saudi Arabia is so conservative. At first there were photographs of women I took that I couldn't publish - of women without their abayas. So I started writing out little anecdotes about things I couldn't photograph and wove it in with a more obscure picture and called it \"moments that got away\". I realised these worked as well as the photographs by themselves. There are a lot of photographers who feel the story is all in the photographs but I really believe in weaving in complementary words with the pictures.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Olivia Arthur" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first-there-were-photographs-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Believe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first-there-were-photographs-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/olivia-arthur-57979_believe_saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first_2529123.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/olivia-arthur-57979_believe_saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first_2529123.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/olivia-arthur-57979_believe_saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first_2529123.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Saudi Arabia is so conservative. At first there were photographs of women I took that I couldn't publish…” — Olivia Arthur", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Olivia Arthur", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-arthur/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Saudi Arabia is so conservative. At...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first-there-were-photographs-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-arthur/saudi-arabia-is-so-conservative-at-first-there-were-photographs-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```