RIYADH, 23 January — Riyadh Governor Prince Salman opened here yesterday a major exhibition featuring a large collection of paintings and photographs of the Kingdom’s archaeological sites and heritage.
The Attawheed Exhibition is being held at the National Museum in Riyadh and was organized by the King Abdul Aziz Public Library to mark the 20th anniversary of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd’s accession to the throne.
Prince Salman was welcomed at the museum by Prince Faissal ibn Abdullah ibn Muhammad, head of the National Guard in the Western Province, and other high-ranking officials.
In his welcome address, Prince Faissal gave an overview of the exhibition, its history and the efforts made to compile the paintings by Gerhardt Leibmann and photographs by Humberto da Silveira.
The opening ceremony was attended by a large number of Saudi and foreign dignitaries, including the guests of the Janadriah heritage festival.
A small documentary on the Kingdom’s history and unification was shown before Prince Salman started his tour of the exhibition. The governor went around the exhibition to view the paintings and photographs that highlighted the Kingdom’s heritage and history.
Leibmann, a celebrated American artist, was commissioned to paint many of the Kingdom’s historic and archaeological sites in 1982. He also painted the portraits of King Abdul Aziz, King Saud, King Faisal, King Khaled, King Fahd, Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, and Prince Sultan, second deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation.
Brazilian photographer Da Silveira was commissioned years later to photograph the sites Liebmann had painted. The paintings and photographs were first exhibited in Jeddah in 1999. The following year the exhibition traveled to the UNESCO building in Beirut and the Institut Du Monde Arabe in Paris.
The Attawheed Exhibition has been the vision of Prince Faissal and Tarik Alireza for 20 years.
Attawheed Collection, a book based on the exhibition, includes general information about the Kingdom illustrated with pictures and paintings.
