Most of you don't know this , but the city of Jeddah is home to one of the world’s largest open air art museums .
There are hundreds of sculptures which adorn the entire city.
here are some of them :) :



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the Islamic verse written in Arabic translates to “Surely thou are upon a mighty morality.”

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Abdulhalim Radwi was the first artist chosen by Jeddah’s Mayor Mohammed Said Farsi to produce works of art for the city’s massive beautification project, which began
in the 1960s. Born in the Holy City of Makkah, but later a proud Jeddah resident, Radwi began his career as an art instructor. In the late 1950s, Radwi began to take his own artistic talents more seriously by creating sculptures that caught the eye of Mayor Farsi.
Radwi’s first attempts proved
to be a learning experience for the talented artist. His preferred media for sculptures were clay and cement, but those materials proved to be too vulnerable
for Jeddah’s brutal weather. Amazingly, he also began by fabricating his early creations on site under a large sunshade which shielded himself and the art from the harsh sun.
Later on he learned to use natural
materials like marble and iron for his sculptures and to work in the much more practical comfort of his studio.
Radwi is credited with producing some fifteen sculptures, including this distinctive three piece work
called Inkwell, Pen and Paper, made of clay and plaster. It has not fared so well now either, which is not surprising given
its location next to the Red Sea.
The scroll used to bear an inscription, now faded.

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The Supplication sculpture (called Al-Doaa in Arabic),
which features a pair of praying hands, bears an inscription on the pedestal which reads, “O my Lord! Expand me my breast; Ease my task for me.”
It was designed by artist Mahmoud Banat is carved from marble and is located on the Corniche which runs along the Red Sea in Jeddah.


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The Cosmos sculpture is one of the most well-known monuments in Jeddah, partly because it is located on a roundabout at one of the city’s busiest intersections and partly because of its enormous size.
Constructed of steel and aluminum, Cosmos is the creation of German artist Ottmar Hollmann, who produced a dozen various works of art for Jeddah’s expansive beautification project.
Soaring into the sky at an total height of over 44 meters (8-1/2 meters of which is the mound base), it is ranked as one of the world’s largest pieces of art. From start to finish, this awesome masterpiece took an astonishing seven years to complete and required the involvement of people from many countries. Hollman created the parts in Germany, which were then shipped to Jeddah for assembly.
Some of the pieces were so large that just getting them from the port to the site involved major planning, such as temporarily removing some street lights and traffic lights in order to ease through some roads, as well as transporting the pieces in the middle of the night at a snail’s pace to prevent traffic jams.

The Cosmos astronomy theme is evident in all aspects of the work. The steel tubes represent the galaxy and orbits, while the large balls represent planets and are embossed with beautiful intricate designs with amazing details.
The monument is also inscribed with a verse from the Qúran about the phases of the moon (blue and white Arabic script at the base).
Even the huge mound base depicts the solar system in the form of a stunning colorful two million piece tile mosaic,
which was created in Italy, shipped to Jeddah, and then was recreated by several Italian craftsman who worked for two months putting it together.


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Unity is Strength Sculpture by Artist Paul Speld

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Sunflower Field Fountain , by Artist Eila Hiltunen
The Sunflower Field Fountain is an outstanding work of art located in a lagoon on Jeddah’s Corniche by the Red Sea and is constructed of corrosion-resistant acid-proof stainless steel.
Selecting the proper grade of steel for this sculpture was of the utmost importance to ensure its durability in withstanding the elements.
The attractive work of art has been a Jeddah landmark since its completion in 1984. This imposing fountain has the distinction of being the largest sculpture by a Finnish artist ever commissioned from overseas.
It makes for an interesting and delightful contradiction in this land of scorching desert landscapes.


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Annawras ( the Seagull ) Sculpture
At 55 meters high, The Seagull stands erect as one of the world’s tallest abstract sculptures.
The most important work created by Egyptian artist Mustafa Senbel for the City of Jeddah, this towering work of art took three years to build.
The tall piece represents the wing of a seagull, while the curved pieces portray the splash of water as it dives into sea to catch its prey.
It also features poetry verses by four of western Saudi Arabia’s most revered poets. The Seagull is made of reinforced concrete and marble and looks different from every angle. Senbel fashioned more than twenty-five sculptures for this Red Sea coastal city during a ten year period of time in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Jeddah boasts the world’s largest open air art museum containing hundreds of sculptures by world reknowned artists that are on display throughout the city for everyone to enjoy.


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Tall Camel Sculpture

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Spanish architect and sculptor Julio Lafuente is credited with creating at least thirty of Jeddah’s distinctive monuments.
This one is called “Science and Religion.” Standing in the middle of a manmade lagoon in the city’s famous Corniche which runs along the Red Sea, this towering obelisk is comprised of 72 solid marble “moons,” each weighing a whopping 1.8 tons. Such intense care had to be taken in erecting this work of art that it took six weeks to completely install it.
The crescent moon at the very top is a symbol of Islam.


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The Mameluke Minarets sculpture is made of copper over a steel frame. Egyptian artist Salah Abdulkarim was inspired by his own country’s Mameluke period designs in mosque architecture.
This sculpture occupies a prominent position in A-Bayah Square in Jeddah.

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Dallah Fountain
This bronze and granite creation is called the Dallah Fountain. It consists of a couple dozen Arabian coffee pots mounted on granite stands and they pour water from their spouts into small granite cups.



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Circles/Spheres
It is made of marble and was created by a group of Belgian artists .


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This sculpture in a busy downtown business center of Jeddah is a replica of an old time water well that supplied water to the city’s residents.


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Quran Sculpture


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The famous Mameluke Mosque Lanterns
are sculptures in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia – when these enormous lanterns are lit up at night, they are quite stunning.
They were created by Spanish artist Julio LaFuente and are part of Jeddah’s open air public art museum.


for more info :http://susieofarabia.wordpress.com/?s=Sculpture
cheers :)

wow amazing thanks for making this thread

i laugh when i remember my childhood i thought the giant cycles are belong to adam and his sons cain and abel :D plus that lanterns has another thoughts i was believed there are people dying inside each lantern :hilarious

anyway i recommended you to buy a book in tohama bookstore it contain an information on each sculpture with photos it's a bit expansive but deserve it.

LOL :D
can you tell what's the book's title ?

i can't remember it clearly but it's named similar to this thread btw the author is al farsi.

Imagine my surprise to see so many of my photos here. I work very hard trying to capture these photos (many taken from a moving car!) and I put a lot of effort into posting every day on my photo blog. You did a nice job, and I thank you for the credits and link to my blog.

The name of the book is JEDDAH CITY OF ART, written by Hani M S Farsi. I picked up my copy at Jarir Bookstore. It's well worth the price, but of course since it was published in 1991 - there is so much more artwork in Jeddah now that could be added to the book. It is my main source of reference when I write my posts.

looking good...is there similar in Riyadh?

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a very good model art in ha'il , that look like a milk small tank that made from Leather , that called in arabic "seqaa"

very