Saudi Royal Institute of Traditional Arts Welcomes Pilgrims with Gifts

The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts distributed special gifts to pilgrims. SPA
The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts distributed special gifts to pilgrims. SPA
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Saudi Royal Institute of Traditional Arts Welcomes Pilgrims with Gifts

The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts distributed special gifts to pilgrims. SPA
The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts distributed special gifts to pilgrims. SPA

The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts has played a key role in this year's Hajj season, continuing its mission to promote Saudi Arabia's rich artistic heritage, in line with the Kingdom's commitment to serving pilgrims, The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Saturday.

The institute distributed special gifts to pilgrims, prayer rugs adorned with traditional Saudi artistic engravings from across the Kingdom, including those found on Najdi doors, Rawashin, Sadu textiles, and Al-Qatt Al-Asiri decorations, which are testimony to the remarkable depth of Saudi culture and highlight the unique character of Saudi art forms, SPA said.

Each prayer rug comes with a tri-lingual welcome card (Arabic, English, and Urdu) – a thoughtful effort by the institute to introduce pilgrims to Saudi culture and its treasured traditional arts, the news agency added.



Saudi Museums Commission Showcases Chinese Contemporary Art for 1st Time in Saudi Arabia

The exhibition draws fascinating parallels between Arab and Chinese traditions. SPA
The exhibition draws fascinating parallels between Arab and Chinese traditions. SPA
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Saudi Museums Commission Showcases Chinese Contemporary Art for 1st Time in Saudi Arabia

The exhibition draws fascinating parallels between Arab and Chinese traditions. SPA
The exhibition draws fascinating parallels between Arab and Chinese traditions. SPA

The Museums Commission inaugurated on Thursday the exhibition "The Writings of Today Are a Promise for Tomorrow" at the Saudi Arabia Museum of Contemporary Art at Jax, introducing contemporary artists of Chinese origin to Saudi Arabia for the first time.
Bringing together over 30 artists of different generations and cultural backgrounds, the exhibition showcases a collection of over 50 art pieces, offering diverse and nuanced perspectives on the profound transformation of our contemporary society.
The exhibition draws fascinating parallels between Arab and Chinese traditions by exploring two central elements they have in common: calligraphy and the garden. The exhibition highlights the profound significance of calligraphy as a cultural and societal practice in both Arabic and Chinese cultures, in which the written word and script are revered not only as a form of communication but also as a spiritual endeavor.
The balance between discipline and naturalness, a requirement for masterful calligraphy, links the field of writing with the domain of the garden. By definition, the garden is nature in an arranged order, and it is considered in both cultures a representation of creation, designed for the appreciation of beauty and spirituality, and for contemplation and conviviality.
"The Writings of Today Are a Promise for Tomorrow" exhibition also reflects an aspiration towards future possibilities and ongoing dialogue, addressing the concepts of energy flow and synergy. Writing here is understood in a larger sense as the trace of a meaningful act of participation and communication.
The exhibition is designed as a stroll through a series of thematic stages, exploring the interplay between presence and absence, action and contemplation, memory and imagination
Visitors will have the opportunity to explore pieces from two notable Paris-based collections of contemporary Chinese art, the Donnersberg Collection and the dslcollection, as well as direct contributions from artists and site-specific works produced in Saudi Arabia for the exhibition. They will also see the works of a French-Algerian artist Adel Abdessemed and Taiwanese artist Michael Lin, showing for the first time in Saudi Arabia.
The exhibition showcases how the art of today continues to evolve, reflecting and reshaping the flow of cultural energy, connecting past and future, and embodying the promise of tomorrow.
The exhibition will run until January 18, 2025.