Open call for artists: 4th Tuwaiq Sculpture

Riyadh Art announces the launch of its open call for the 4th edition of Tuwaiq Sculpture, an annual sculpture symposium that brings local and international artists together to create public artworks that become an integral part of Riyadh’s urban fabric. 

To date Tuwaiq Sculpture has engaged over 60 world-renowned sculptors and thousands of visitors. It is an integral part of the Riyadh Art project, which aims to transform the city into a gallery without walls, with more than 1,000 artworks to be displayed all across the Saudi capital, throughout neighborhoods, parks, and public spaces, elevating its status as a top city in the world for sustainability and quality of life, in line with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.

4th Tuwaiq Sculpture includes a live sculpture making event that is open to the public and is based in Riyadh’s JAX District, a flourishing destination for arts and culture in Saudi Arabia. In parallel to the creative process, a range of community engagement events will take place, including school and university visits, workshops, and panel discussions.

The symposium will culminate in a five-day exhibition at JAX District. After the exhibition ends, the sculptures will be permanently relocated to Qasr Al-Hukm District, the heart of the city and a vital pillar of Saudi Arabia’s history, with its role as the political, cultural, and commercial centre of Riyadh. The artworks will thus enrich the Riyadh Art collection, becoming an integral part of the city’s topography and enlivening the cultural life of Riyadh’s inhabitants and visitors. 

Artists from around the world, who have at least five years of experience in sculpting and exhibiting in outdoor spaces and galleries, are invited to send their proposals in response to a curatorial theme. A total of 30 local and international artists will be selected by a jury panel to participate in the symposium, where they will work with either Granite or Riyadh Stone (sandstone) to create large-scale public artworks.

Curated by Marek Wolynski, the theme of the 4th Tuwaiq Sculpture is Energy of Harmony, which reflects on the fundamental characteristic of human existence—the ongoing synthesis of opposing forces. To attain harmony means to maintain equilibrium, balancing between variation and repetition, sparsity and abundance, inactivity and vibrance. Energy of Harmony establishes points of connection and focus within the urban environment of Riyadh, giving a heightened awareness of co-existing structures, voices, and patterns.

Based in London, Marek specializes in large-scale projects and cross-sector partnerships, having previously worked on creative commissions and seminal exhibitions with the British Council, United Nations, Mayor of London, Verbeke Foundation, European Parliament, Luma Foundation, and Art Rotterdam, among others.

The jury panel who will select the Tuwaiq Sculpture artists includes Alaa Tarabzouni, Director of ATHR Gallery, an architect and artist whose practice focuses on urbanism and the built environment; Ali Al-Tokhais, a sculptor with a practice spanning 40 years and an expert is stones originating from Saudi Arabia; a renowned academic whose work revolves around the arts, culture, and heritage of Saudi Arabia and whose name will be announced soon; Johannes von Stumm, a critically acclaimed sculptor, President of the Oxford Art Society and Past President of the Royal Society of Sculptors in the UK; and the curator.

Participating artists will have the opportunity to contribute to Tuwaiq Sculpture’s community engagement program, which hosts school and university visits that provide students direct exposure to various sculptural practices, as well as sculpting skills, tools, techniques and materials. 

The open call closes on September 18, and selected artists will be announced at the end of October. More information on the application process can be found on the Riyadh Art website.