The Royal Commission for Riyadh City and Riyadh Art proudly announce the opening of the 6th edition of Tuwaiq Sculpture’s exhibition. From February 12 to February 24, 2025, visitors are invited to explore the 30 completed sculptures created during the live sculpting phase at ROSHN Front.
Guided by the theme “From Then to Now: Joy in the Struggle of Making,” this year’s works highlight the creative journey—one of persistence, refinement, and artistic expression. The exhibition offers a rare opportunity to witness how sculptors from diverse cultural backgrounds bring their unique perspectives to life. Created during the public live sculpting phase from January 15 to February 8, these works will leave a lasting impact, further embedding public art into Riyadh’s urban landscape.
Selected from over 750 applications worldwide, the participating 30 artists from 23 countries represent a wide range of sculptural traditions and contemporary practices. Each piece reflects an interpretation of this year’s theme, merging artistic innovation with cultural heritage.
Sebastian Betancur-Montoya, Lead Curator of Tuwaiq Sculpture 2025, shares: “The exhibition is a culmination of weeks of dedication, artistic exchange, and craftsmanship. These sculptures are more than temporary installations; they are part of an enduring cultural dialogue, bridging history and modernity, and contributing to Riyadh’s evolving public art landscape.”
Building upon the public engagement program of the live sculpting phase—featuring panel discussions, workshops, masterclasses, and guided tours—the exhibition offers visitors an opportunity to further engage with the artists’ creative processes and the significance of contemporary sculpture.
A Legacy in the Making
As part of Riyadh Art’s long-term commitment to public art, all sculptures created during Tuwaiq Sculpture 2025 will become part of Riyadh Art’s permanent collection. These works will be integrated into key public spaces across the city, joining 35 sculptures from previous editions of Tuwaiq Sculpture already installed at King Abdulaziz Historical Center. Among the notable additions to Riyadh Art’s permanent collection are LOVE (Red Outside Blue Inside) by American artist Robert Indiana and Janey Waney by fellow American Alexander Calder, both located at KAFD Metro Station, as well as the sun by Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone, which was recently installed at King Abdulaziz Historical Center. This initiative underscores Riyadh Art’s commitment to enhancing the city’s permanent collection, making art an accessible and immersive part of public life while enriching the daily experience of residents and visitors.
The exhibition is free and open to the public, allowing visitors to experience the artworks firsthand in an outdoor setting at ROSHN Front. For more information on schedules and ticketing, visit: https://riyadhart.sa/en/tuwaiq-sculpture.
-END-
For more information regarding Riyadh Art and Tuwaiq Sculpture, please contact:
Riyadh Art Media Center: [email protected]
-NOTES TO EDITORS-
Participating Artists Nationality Artwork Title
Bodour AlAqidi Saudi Arabia Trhab
Ali AlHamoud Saudi Arabia Endless Arrival
Obai Allaa ElDin AlHattoom Syria Elements Union
Ali AlMalky Saudi Arabia Ambition
Noha AlSharif Saudi Arabia Sanam
Rawan AlShehri Saudi Arabia Spontaneity
Ali AlTokhais Saudi Arabia Care and Interest in the Content
Hiroyuki Asakawa Japan Sharing Happiness
Susana Botana Spain Balance
Juan Caicedo Colombia Grind
Jacob Lucius Cartwright Australia Memory Palace
Birgit Cauer Germany Granite Blooming in the Brightness of Now
Furkan Depeli Türkiye Khrononfinite
Khalid Farhan Bahrain Sculpture Dynamics
Majid Haghighi Iran Forgotten Corners
Seungwoo Hwang South Korea The Whisper of The Wave
Dangyong Liu China Happiness in the Palm
Juan Pablo Marturano Argentina Mountains of the Mind
Arianna Palmieri Italy Motion of Revolution
Masa Paunovic Serbia Evolution
Petre Borissov Petrov Bulgaria The Movement
Anna Teresa Rasinska Poland Periodicity
Ebtesam Saleh Saudi Arabia Anan
Vankhade Sangam India Eternal Continuum
Mikhail Sobolev Russia Compression of Flows
Anna Sosenskaia Russia The Birth of Beauty
Reto Steiner Switzerland Turbulent Past
Genti Tavanxhiu Albania Dance
Chuan-Hsien Yeh Taiwan Ongoing Tense
Khaled Zaki Egypt The Gift Box
About Tuwaiq Sculpture
Tuwaiq Sculpture is an annual sculpture symposium that brings local and international artists together to create public artworks in a live setting. Through an interactive program of workshops, school visits and talks, Tuwaiq Sculpture engages diverse communities and bolsters cultural exchanges. The symposium culminates in an on-site exhibition, with the sculptures enriching the Riyadh Art collection and later becoming a permanent feature of the Saudi capital’s urban fabric.
Part of Riyadh Art, Tuwaiq Sculpture is a significant contributor to the Riyadh Art collection and the project’s goal of commissioning 1,000 public artworks to be displayed across the city. After each edition of the symposium, sculptures are permanently installed in key locations across the city, becoming an integral part of Riyadh’s urban fabric.
Tuwaiq Sculpture is a platform where local and international artists meet, collaborate and create large-scale public artworks in a live setting. The open format of the symposium allows the public to observe the creative process, participate in interactive workshops and discuss the history and future of public art, effectively contributing to the enrichment of the cultural scene in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Since its inception in 2019, Tuwaiq Sculpture has engaged over 90 internationally renowned sculptors and thousands of visitors.
Website: https://riyadhart.sa/en/programs/tuwaiq-sculpture/
About Riyadh Art
Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia, is on a 10-year mission to become one of the world’s most livable and competitive cities, a global center which is open for business and that welcomes the world. With a young and rapidly growing population of 7+ million residents, Riyadh is transforming into a vibrant and cosmopolitan metropolis.
Art and culture reflect the spirit of a city. That’s why the Riyadh Art project has been developed to turn the whole capital into a creative canvas – a gallery without walls – to enrich lives, ignite creative expression and kindle the creative economy. Riyadh Art is a demonstration of the open, accessible, and creative transformation of the capital, where the exchange of ideas through creative expression, develops a deeper sense of mutual understanding and respect.
The Riyadh Art project will have a positive impact on people, bringing every day moments of joy to residents and visitors alike, while instilling a greater sense of civic pride and creating a more beautiful city for everyone to enjoy. It will also spark the development of the new creative economy and have a positive effect on attracting new businesses to invest in the city.
Website: www.riyadhart.sa
Instagram: www.instagram.com/riyadhartofficial/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Riyadh_Arts
Facebook: www.facebook.com/RiyadhArtOfficial
