Dazzling Art Piece 'Brilliance of Souls' by Japanese Artist in AlUla

The “Brilliance of the Souls” art piece is displayed in AlJadidah Arts District in AlUla governorate in Saudi Arabia.
The “Brilliance of the Souls” art piece is displayed in AlJadidah Arts District in AlUla governorate in Saudi Arabia.
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Dazzling Art Piece 'Brilliance of Souls' by Japanese Artist in AlUla

The “Brilliance of the Souls” art piece is displayed in AlJadidah Arts District in AlUla governorate in Saudi Arabia.
The “Brilliance of the Souls” art piece is displayed in AlJadidah Arts District in AlUla governorate in Saudi Arabia.

The “Brilliance of the Souls” art piece is displayed in AlJadidah Arts District in AlUla governorate, which is part of the “Infinity Mirror Room” series, presented by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama to the thriving art scene in the Kingdom, SPA said on Wednesday.
Visitors will experience a journey that travels into the Japanese artist's exceptional vision of endless contemplation, with a deceptively small space with reflective surfaces and water surrounding the central platform, where the artist's intellect is embodied in her ability to transform a narrow space into an infinite world of artistic expression.
Brilliance of the Souls is a stunning masterpiece and an ideal location for taking spectacular photos. The installation was created in harmony with the natural environment surrounding AlUla.
Multi-colored fields of light are hung at different heights and intervals from the ceiling, evoking images of celestial bodies, stars, planets, and galaxies. Viewing the masterpiece, one will be transported into an ethereal and limitless dimension.
Entry to Brilliance of the Souls art piece will be free and will be available from 4pm to 11pm over a span of two months.



Japan’s Sado Mines Added to World Heritage List

This photo taken on May 9, 2022 shows a mine on Sado island. (AFP)
This photo taken on May 9, 2022 shows a mine on Sado island. (AFP)
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Japan’s Sado Mines Added to World Heritage List

This photo taken on May 9, 2022 shows a mine on Sado island. (AFP)
This photo taken on May 9, 2022 shows a mine on Sado island. (AFP)

A network of mines on a Japanese island infamous for using conscripted wartime labor was added to UNESCO's World Heritage register Saturday after South Korea dropped earlier objections to its listing.

The Sado gold and silver mines, now a popular tourist attraction, are believed to have started operating as early as the 12th century and produced until after World War II.

Japan had put a case for World Heritage listing because of their lengthy history and the artisanal mining techniques used there at a time when European mines had turned to mechanization.

The proposal was opposed by Seoul when it was first put because of the use of involuntary Korean labor during World War II, when Japan occupied the Korean peninsula.

UNESCO confirmed the listing of the mines at its ongoing committee meeting in New Delhi on Saturday after a bid highlighting its archaeological preservation of "mining activities and social and labor organization".

"I would like to wholeheartedly welcome the inscription... and pay sincere tribute to the long-standing efforts of the local people which made this possible," Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa said in a statement.

The World Heritage effort was years in the making, inspired in part by the successful recognition of a silver mine in western Japan's Shimane region.

South Korea's foreign ministry said it had agreed to the listing "on the condition that Japan faithfully implements the recommendation... to reflect the 'full history' at the Sado Gold Mine site and takes proactive measures to that end."

Historians have argued that recruitment conditions at the mine effectively amounted to forced labor, and that Korean workers faced significantly harsher conditions than their Japanese counterparts.

"Discrimination did exist," Toyomi Asano, a professor of history of Japanese politics at Tokyo's Waseda University, told AFP in 2022.

"Their working conditions were very bad and dangerous. The most dangerous jobs were allocated to them."

Also added to the list on Saturday was the Beijing Central Axis, a collection of former imperial palaces and gardens in the Chinese capital.

The UNESCO committee meeting runs until Wednesday.