Tuwaiq International Sculpture Symposium year 2021, brought 20 sculptors from around the world together to produce a series of permanent public sculptures for a period of 21 days, from November 15 – December 5, 2021. The resulting sculptures were exhibited in situ for a period of four days, until December 10, after which they will be relocated to permanent locations throughout the capital city of Saudi Arabia, in line with Riyadh Art’s mission to enrich the everyday lives of its residents and visitors alike.
Under the theme ‘The Poetics of Space’ three winning sculptures were selected. In first place was New Zealander Anna Korver’s artwork entitled ‘The Lighthouses’, in second place was Saudi artist Haider Alawi Al-Alawi’s piece ‘Desert Lines’, and in third place was Belgian artist Kim De Ruysscher’s ‘Unseen’.
The 20 selected artists for the 2021 edition of the Tuwaiq International Sculpture Symposium will create sculptures from black and white pearl marble in a live setting that will open up the creative process to the public at JAX District in Riyadh.
Wafa Al-Qunibit
Saudi Arabia
Wafa Al Qunibit (b. 1967) is an artist and trainer with a Masters degree in sculpture from Savannah College of Art and Design, Atlanta, U.S. (2016) and a Master of Business Administration from Columbus University (2009).
Haider Alawi Al-Alawi
Saudi Arabia
Haider Alawi Al-Alawi was awarded second place at Tuwaiq Sculpture year 2021 for his vision in condensing the experience of landscape in a synthesis of abstraction and figuration. His sculpture entitled ‘Desert Lines’ evokes the Saudi landscape, characterised by sun, wind and sand.
Isabel H. Langtry
United Kingdom
Isabel H Langtry was born in Lagos, Nigeria from a Galician-Spanish and British heritage, which forms an essential part of her cultural DNA. Her objective as a sculptor is to produce large-scale works for public spaces.
Kim De Ruysscher
Belgium
Kim De Ruysscher was awarded third place at Tuwaiq Sculpture year 2021 who poses, through his sculpture entitled ‘Unseen’, an open enigma in which the idea of figuration is questioned by the concept of illusion through covering.
Mohammed Al Thagafi
Saudi Arabia
Muhammad Al Thagafi (born in 1975) is a founding member of the Saudi Society for Fine Arts. Among the pioneers of the Saudi art scene, he is a well-known sculptor locally and internationally. He holds a master’s degree in sculpture from Umm Al-Qura University (2016).
Carlos Monge
Mexico
Carlos Monge (b. 1947) lives between Mexico and Spain. He is the Mexican and Spanish representative of the International Association for Monumental Sculpture Events (AIESM). Monge has participated in 100+ symposiums around the world since 1990.
Riyadh Art’s ten programs and two festivals turn the city into a creative canvas, bringing public art to the spaces where people travel, work and play.
Explore NowTuwaiq Sculpture is curated by Ali Jabbar, an accomplished multidisciplinary artist with 40 years of experience in sculpting, who also helped select the artists alongside an expert panel including:
Cristiana Collu (Director of the National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, Rome, Italy); Nicholas Cullinan (Director of the National Portrait Gallery, London, UK); Yuko Hasegawa (Director of the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art); Marina Loshak (Director of the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow, Russia) and Eike Schmidt (Director of Uffizi Galleries, Florence, Italy).
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Riyadh Art’s 10 programs and 2 festivals turn the city into a creative canvas, bringing public art to the spaces where people travel, work and play.
Noor Riyadh
Launched in 2021, Noor Riyadh is a new citywide annual festival of light and art consisting of numerous public art installations across Riyadh city, an awe-inspiring exhibition of light art; and a diverse program of talks, tours, workshops and events
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Tuwaiq International Sculpture Symposium
Tuwaiq International Sculpture Symposium will consist of 20 sculptors from around the world coming together to produce a series of permanent public sculptures.
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Urban Art Lab
An innovative community outreach program to introduce new public art commissions across the city where residents can get ‘hands-on’ in each location.
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Joyous Gardens
Artist-designed playgrounds located across Riyadh, these are vibrant, inspiring and educational places that spark creativity and adventure, and support the wellbeing of the community.
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Jewels in Riyadh
Public spaces around the city transformed by permanent, large-scale installations selected specifically for each location to reflect the purpose, narrative and context of each place.
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Welcoming Gateways
Grand gateways on the main access routes into Riyadh herald the entrance to a city of culture.
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Art on the Move
What better way to find - and enjoy - moving around the city than with multiple large-scale and colorful public art commissions placed at major road and rail intersections, bridges and overpasses?
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Art in Transit
Creating beautiful and distinctive stations on Riyadh’s Metro and BRT bus system. Artwork on every platform brings joy to every journey.
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Urban Flow
Integrating public art into the fabric of the citywide network of pedestrian walkways and footpaths, enticing citizens to explore and experience art and the city on their own terms.
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The Hidden River – The Illuminated Bridges
Stunning illumination of bridges across the city to emphasize their role as physical, social and emotional connectors with communities.
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The Hidden River – Art Trail
Ancient wadis are given new life through art trails for all the family which interpret their unique history, heritage and ecology through art.
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Garden City
A sculpture park for everyone where they can relax alone, or with friends and family, and experience contemporary art outside the gallery. A place to reflect, remember or create magical moments.
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Riyadh Icon
This is a statement to the world. A symbol for Riyadh and the cultural aspirations of Vision 2030. A distinctive and unmistakable 21st century icon for Saudi Arabia.
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