PhotoEssay: Jeddah's Bizarre Artwork Top 10

When I first arrived in Jeddah, one of the first things I noticed was the presence of all sorts of artwork (sculptures,arches,fountains, etc.) seemingly strewn about the city's main roads. After living here for a month I found out why. Apparently, one of Jeddah's former mayors was something of a visionary, and hoped to turn the city into the world's largest open-air art gallery. Many artists, Arabs as well as Europeans, were summoned to produce works of art for this cause. As a result, Jeddah today is adorned with dozens of pieces of art, mainly sculptures. Because it is prohibited in Islam to imitate Allah's creations in any way, art here takes the form only of inanimate objects. Some of this artwork is quite nice, some interesting, but a lot of it is just plain weird. I decided to create a small photo essay of the strangest, most bizarre, artistic creations from the streets of Jeddah to show you what I mean. Most of the following are found along the coastal road or roundabouts throughout the city. Here goes:

#10

This is just one of those things that are supposed to be "modern and abstract", I guess. Maybe the artist should have worked more on "aesthetically pleasing" though. 

#9

I can only assume these are enormous chocolate ice cream cones, just chilling in the middle of the road.

#8 

It's a gigantic red faucet. Enough said.

#7  

Sometimes I like to think that this sculpture is making a statement, perhaps about the value of fair play, or the importance of an active, healthy lifestyle. Then again, maybe it's just a huge yellow whistle.

#6 

There's actually a whole series of these, not just the pliers.  There's also a saw, cutting through some wooden boxes, a hammer, banging on some enormous bricks, and a spade, sticking out of a block of concrete. I really don't know why though.

#5 

 

This thing just looks like the product of a minaret and a really big seashell mating.

#4

Is it a wave? Is it an octopus? Nope, it's a bunch of blue tiles and it's ugly.

#3 

This can only be a tribute to Saudis'  driving skills.

#2 

This is probably one of my favorite artworks in Jeddah's open- air gallery. I mean, it's a car riding a flying carpet. Doesn't get much cooler than that.

#1

I didn't manage to capture this as I would have liked, since I was in a moving car. In case you can't tell, it's a boat overflowing with massive fruit, riding tile waves. I'm pretty sure it's the most random thing I've ever seen.

Well, that's my Top 10 of Jeddah's most bizarre art, but it's really the smallest possible sample of the incredible artwork to be found in the city's streets. If you'd like to see more, please comment below :)

Dubai Days, Pt.II

So, continuing from where I left off on my last post, more things I enjoyed in Dubai:

*Dubai Museum

The Dubai Museum is located inside Al Fahidi Fort, built in 1787 to protect the city from invasion and renovated into a museum in 1971. Some of its exhibitions are what you would expect to see in most museums: jewelry, weaponry, all sorts of everyday artifacts. What's really impressive though, is the lifesize dioramas in the galleries, which depict life in the U.A.E. before the discovery of oil. Scenes from desert and marine life,  trading in the souks, date harvests, religious practices, and more, come to life while walking through this amazing exhibition. The figures are so lifelike it's almost eerie.

*Sand in a Bottle Art

This man had a little stall, at which he sat creating a very unique form of art. I stopped to watch him and he explained the procedure to me as he worked. Around him were many bowls filled with sand that he had dyed earlier in a variety of colors. Taking sand from these bowls, he poured layer upon layer, switching colors as he went, into a glass bottle, until he had created an image of camels with rippling sand dunes in the background. He packed the sand in tightly, sealing the top with glue, so, even if the bottle were to be shaken vigorously, the image would not be ruined. He made this little masterpiece in less than 10', and of course I bought one, the only souvenir I got from Dubai.

*Cruising the Dubai Creek

The Creek is essentially the reason Dubai exists as a city, since this is where members of the Bani Yas tribe created the first settlement. Not only that, but it was also where the pearl trade with the outside world began. Today, trading still commences on dhows (traditional wooden boats) on the Deira side of the Creek. Taking a cruise on the Creek is a rather touristy thing to do, but very pleasant. Large or smaller dhows carry passengers along the Dubai Creek, passing by key points of the city, such as souks, the Dubai Museum, the Heritage Village, mosques and more.

*National Pride

 December 2nd and 3rd are U.A.E.'s national days, celebrating its formal nationalization from the British Protectorate Treaties and the unification of the seven emirates (1971). This means that when we got there, preparations were in full flow, and Dubai was completely decked out in celebratory decoration . The whole city was a haze of green, red, black and white. Flags were the main decoration, as it happens on national days around the world. Simply everywhere, ranging from tiny ones clasped onto car windows with little plastic rods, to enormous ones, that seemed about an acre wide, draped on skyscraper exteriors. It wasn't just the flags though, everything seemed to be U.A.E. themed. I even saw a few cars with a U.A.E. paint job, complete with the faces of the local rulers on the side doors. That's another thing I get a kick out of, and it's done in Saudi Arabia as well. The rulers' faces are everywhere, often blown up to enormous proportions, so wherever you go, you have Sheikh Something-or-Other staring down at you. I just love visiting cities when they're all "dressed up" and festive :)