Riyadh Art project is one of Riyadh’s Four Megaprojects launched by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman Bin Abdulaziz, on 19 March 2019. The project will be a milestone that contributes to fulfilling a key goal of the Saudi Vision 2030 to promote Riyadh’s position among the world’s most livable cities.
Within the project, many artworks and landmarks created by local and international artists will be installed across the city of Riyadh. The project comprises two annual events and a 10-program plan that covers residential neighborhoods, gardens, parks, squares, metro/bus stations, bridges, city entrances, and tourism destinations.
This project will contribute to improving the quality of life in the city of Riyadh and transforming it into an open gallery and paving the way for a local and international creative artistic movement. It will, among others, engage artists from all around the world, strengthen social values, and improve knowledge transfer.
Project Programs
There’s choice – and inspiration – for everyone. Ten major programs throughout the city and two annual festivals create a vibe for Riyadh as a city of culture.
Riyadh Icon
This is dedicated to the creation of a 21st-century distinctive icon for the city of Riyadh and Saudi Arabia. This ambitious international commission is a visual symbol of the cultural aspirations of Vision 2030 and it heralds a new era of Saudi intention to celebrate a global community that sparks creativity, ignites the art movement, encourages self-expression, and creates an inclusive culture.
Garden City
This is a sculpture park for the 21st century, inviting new interpretations of art, technology, and environmental engagement for Riyadh’s residents and visitors. It creates a new environment for experiencing interactive and contemporary art outside of the museum, accessible to all at a human scale, and a platform for small and medium-sized permanent and temporary outdoor artworks to be programmed as part of the wider park creative experience.
1 location, approximately 30 elements.
The Hidden River – Art Trail
Artists interpret the unique history, heritage, and ecology of the wadis of Riyadh while promoting the artisanal and artistic spirit of the community.
The Hidden River is an art trail that explores and reimagines traditional craft-based techniques.
Approximately 5 locations (more than 100 artworks) and lightning of 10 bridges.
Urban Flow
Urban Flow integrates world-class public artworks into the fabric of the citywide network of pedestrian bridges to encourage pedestrians and cyclists out into the streets to navigate a city that has become a creative canvas.
Approximately 10 key locations, more than 70 elements.
Art in Transit
The Art in Transit program integrates public art into the core fabric of Riyadh’s Metro and BRT bus system to create beautiful and distinctive stations, supported by innovative programs that foster interaction amongst citizens.
Art in Transit Program features +500 artworks to be integrated within +2000 potential locations along Riyadh Metro and Bus stations.
Art on the Move
A series of distinctive large-scale, high-impact, colorful, and kinetic art interventions designed to support the wayfinding experience of Riyadh. Artworks will be integrated into the core infrastructure of the city, such as bridges and overpasses, and placed at major road and rail intersections to provide a truly joyful everyday experience.
Approximately 19 locations, 19 artworks.
Welcoming Gateways
A series of grand “gates of culture” heralded the entrance to Riyadh as a city of culture. Riyadh’s Welcoming Gateways set the tone for a city where the arts and creativity are essential components of a vibrant and inspiring global city.
Approximately 10 locations, 10 iconic gateways.
Jewels of Riyadh
Permanent, large-scale site-specific installations form an ongoing program to enhance public spaces, celebrate cultural heritage, contribute to community building, improve the quality of urban life for residents, and attract international tourism. Jewels in Riyadh commissions draw ideas and inspiration from civic spaces around the city, focusing on places frequented by people every day to stimulate a vibrant community.
Approximately 10 locations, 15 artworks.
Joyous Gardens
Joyous Gardens provide spaces for creative play as a core part of the healthy and vibrant urban life in Riyadh. Featuring many artist-designed playgrounds located in small, medium, and large Riyadh parks, these are vibrant, inspiring, and educational places that spark creativity and adventure and encourage exploration of the natural world. Famous artists reinvent traditional play equipment such as the slide, climbing frame, roundabout, and swing. Imaginative sculptural forms offer dynamic seating and creative play, and artistic canopies provide shelter, shade, and places for social connection in a true sense of community.
More than 200 urban locations, +3000 elements.
Urban Art Lab
Galleries for well-known artists in city squares that encourage interaction between artists and citizens. Each pavilion will include one digital artwork and cultural programming and is a blend of production atelier, gallery, artist studio, open-air classroom, office, and lecture space.
Approximately 4 pavilions, 4 Interactive artworks, 8 urban locations.
Project Annual Events
Tuwaiq International Sculpture Symposium
Tuwaiq International Sculpture Symposium joins a group of leading local and international sculptors from around the world coming together to produce a series of permanent public sculptures.
The entire creative process will be open and accessible to the public with a program of events visits and talks. The work will be on view at the end of the Symposium before moving to an open-air gallery that will be accessible to the public.
Noor Riyadh
The 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.
Project Benefits
- Transform Riyadh into a hub for creativity, where artists and art lovers from all around the world gather and interact.
- Open new horizons for a creative movement across the city.
- Encourage the city’s tourism and entertainment sectors.
Guinness World Records
Riyadh Art’s Noor Riyadh was awarded Guinness World Records for two of the artworks commissioned for the festival’s first-ever year.
- Karolina Halatek’s ‘Beacon’, 2021: It was named the world’s Largest LED structure, comprising an incredible 272,160 LEDs.
- Koert Vermeulen’s ‘Star in Motion’, 2021: It was recognized as the world’s Brightest suspended ornament: its 1.2 million lumens hanging at a height of 256 meters atop Riyadh’s iconic Kingdom Tower.
