In a collaborative effort, the first art festival of the year will be launched in Jeddah from Feb. 24-28, entitled “Arabian Wings Haii.”
Arabian Wings Fine Art, in cooperation with Brown Book Dubai, Abdul Latif Jameel Community Initiatives (ALJCI), the Saudi Art and Culture Association and the Ministry of Culture and Information, aims to spread greater awareness about art in the Kingdom through this festival.
“We want Jeddah to join the ranks of other cities such as Dubai, Italy and Spain, which are known to be great art festival cities,” said Mohammed Bahrawi, co-founder of Arabian wings and organizer of Arabian Wings Haii art festival in a press conference on Tuesday.
According to Bahrawi, the Kingdom has yet no specific month for residents and artists to appreciate various forms of art and to attend art-related festivals or gatherings, whilst in other countries such events are common. The organizers were motivated to fill this void and set an example for other art-lovers to follow pursuit in organizing similar events.
“We wanted to give Jeddawis the opportunity to experience and appreciate art, similar to the Art Dubai festival. Our idea is to set an example for similar art activities to flourish in our country,” he added.
Arabian Wings Haii, will launch the festival with a press conference on Feb. 23, in which Najlaa Felemban, founder of Arabian Wings; Mohammed Bandouri, an art critic and specialist; and Yasmein Rasool from Brown Book Dubai will discuss with journalists and dignitaries the importance of this event.
Abdul Aziz Khoja, Minister of Culture and Information, will officially inaugurate the limited edition of the 2012 book on Feb. 24, and an exhibition of the art collection will be displayed for the public and distinguished guests.
The collection will display 30 fascinating art pieces of various styles including acrylic on canvas, mixed media, wooden art, oil pastels on carved wood, sculptures, installation art, Arabic calligraphy and photography.
Moreover, the festival will exhibit the work of famous Saudi artists, exposing their talents in numerous live art shows performed by artists such as Ajeib Yousef and Khalid bin Afif, in addition to a caricature act by Mazen Al-Ramal and a live graffiti show by Mazen Al-Shemrani.
Fady Jameel, president of ALJCI International said, “I am immensely proud of our association with Arabian Wings; they have done a fantastic job.”
The art festival will be hosted by Theatro mall in Jeddah.
Year’s first art fest coming to Jeddah
