JEDDAH, 30 June 2005 — Pupils from the German School in Jeddah have become the first to exhibit their work in an innovative public art project, turning an eyesore into an art gallery. Four panels of hand-painted ceramic tiles now hang on a boundary wall at the Golden Tulip Beach in Obhur.
The idea for the wall of art came about when Rudolf Steiger, executive assistant manager at Jeddah’s Al-Bilad Hotel, was faced with a newly constructed gray concrete wall alongside the beach. “We had to do something to relieve the dullness,” he said. “The obvious thing to do was paint it — but then, I thought why not pictures?”
Steiger contacted the German Consulate who suggested the German School — and so the project was born.
To endure the heat and salty air of the beach, any artwork has to be made of durable materials. After considering the possibilities, Gudrun Baehler, the art teacher, decided on ceramic tiles.
“That was quite a challenge,” she said. “One of the characteristics of glazes used on tiles is that the final color after firing is not the same as the color when they are painted on the white tile. The tiles could only be fired in our school kiln in small batches. It was a lot of work, but worth it.”
Despite that, the work was parceled out to four groups, each taking on a different theme. Fish, camels and an exotically branched tree form the basis of the designs on the four finished panels. “It took the pupils three months of hard work to finish them,” said Gudrun. “The techniques were new to most of the pupils, so it was a good learning experience as well as fun.”
To celebrate the fixing of the completed panels to the wall, Steiger invited the entire school and staff for a fun day at the beach, with his compliments. “It’s the first time the children have seen their work in place,” he said. “You can see they are proud of it.”
Headmaster Hans-Joachim Berg was pleased with the result. “We are only a small school of about 60 pupils,” he said, “and to produce this artwork is a remarkable effort. All credit to the pupils and the staff.”
Steiger said having seen the quality of the artwork, he wants more. “There are 20 or so more panels to fill,” he said. “Any school that can come up with a good idea for a durable wall decoration is welcome to contact us. We will provide materials — what we want is bright ideas!”
One of his own ideas is to create the facade of a traditional dwelling complete with door and “rowshan” (wooden window screens).
