Tuwaiq Lanterns Illuminate Riyadh During Ramadan Nights Public Art Exhibit

The Tuwaiq Sculpture Exhibition is welcoming visitors along Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Street during Ramadan nights, turning a key avenue in the capital into an outdoor gallery. The event is part of the Riyadh Art Program and offers residents and tourists extended visiting hours from 8:30 p.m. until 2:30 a.m. every day.

The exhibition continues until March 8 and is presented as an open cultural experience in a major commercial district. It highlights how public art now forms a visible element of Riyadh’s changing urban scene, giving people direct access to sculptures without entering traditional indoor venues or ticketed institutions.

During the holy month of Ramadan, the Tuwaiq Sculpture Exhibition gains a special social and spiritual character. Sculptures become quiet landmarks in the city at night, encouraging reflection amid low noise and softer lighting. Visitors move between the artworks in a calm environment that mirrors the contemplative mood associated with Ramadan evenings.

After iftar, families and groups head to the site as part of their nightly routines. The movement of people leaving homes and restaurants then blends with the slower pace of the late hours. This mix of daily life and reflection creates a setting where public art connects closely with community habits during Ramadan.

The Tuwaiq Sculpture Exhibition displays 25 sculptures that were produced during the live sculpting stage of the Tuwaiq International Sculpture Symposium. Artists from Saudi Arabia and several other countries took part in the symposium, working side by side in Riyadh while residents observed the creative process in real time.

Participants used stones drawn from Saudi landscapes, including granite and basalt, linking the works to local geology. Under the symposium’s seventh-edition theme, "Forms of What Will Be," artists explored ideas of change and potential. Each piece interprets transformation differently while sharing a common material connection to the Kingdom’s natural environment.

Tuwaiq Sculpture Exhibition within Riyadh Art Program

The exhibition is one of the outcomes of the Tuwaiq International Sculpture Symposium, which is held under the Riyadh Art Program supervised by the Royal Commission for Riyadh City. Through this programme, public art projects are placed in streets and open spaces, helping integrate sculpture into the everyday visual landscape of residents and visitors.

By bringing artworks into a busy commercial street, the Tuwaiq Sculpture Exhibition also shifts the traditional relationship between art and public space. People encounter sculptures while walking, shopping, or meeting friends, rather than in closed halls. This approach supports a broader cultural environment, where art becomes part of the city’s ongoing transformation.

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With inputs from SPA