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RIYADH: The Saudi Research and Media Group unveiled a compelling collection at the inaugural Art Week Riyadh that traces the evolution of Saudi abstraction.

Titled “Abstract Horizons,” it highlights the pioneering contributions of artists like Mohammed Al-Saleem and Abdulhalim Radwi, whose work helped lay the groundwork for the Kingdom’s contemporary art movement.

Borrowing its name from Al-Saleem’s seminal work, the collection takes a unique approach, emphasizing the shifting aesthetic and intellectual currents of the Kingdom through the abstract practices of three generations of Saudi artists.

The exhibition seamlessly flows from the early beginnings with artists born in the 1930s and 1940s, whose work predominantly emerged in the 1990s: Radwi was a foundational figure in Saudi modernism; Al-Saleem, who became notable for establishing the “horizonism” movement, characterized his work with a geometric depiction of the Saudi skyline and desertscape; Taha Al-Seban furthered the desert motif with his unique color compositions.

From there, it can be seen how abstraction has transformed into a crucial language in the cultural scene.

The exhibition continues to work from the early 2000s, engaging more with culture, identity and memory. There are artists like Abdulrahman Al-Soliman, also a critic, who infused architectural elements to bridge between heritage and contemporary expression; Abdullah Hamas, who reimagines the Saudi landscape through geometric compositions; Fahad Al-Hajailan, whose abstraction plays with color and movement; Raeda Ashour, one of the first female Saudi abstract artists, who adopts a minimalist yet evocative approach with a chromatic palette and fluid silhouettes. 

Then, at the turn of the 21st century, there is the work of artists born in the 1970s. Abstraction is now a conceptual tool.

Rashed Al-Shashai, known for his experimental approach, repurposes everyday materials to construct layered compositions that address the tension between tradition and modernity while, in contrast, Zaman Jassim’s abstraction interplays between the tangible and the elusive.

SRMG’s collection is on display as part of an exhibition titled “Collections in Dialogue,” featuring collected works by the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) and Hayy Jameel.

LONDON: A group of MPs in the UK have called on the government to launch an Iraq war-style inquiry into Britain’s role in the Gaza conflict, Sky News reported on Wednesday.

The 37 MPs include 10 from the governing Labour Party, who have signed a letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer written by Jeremy Corbyn, the party’s former leader.

Corbyn demanded a “comprehensive inquiry with legal power to establish the truth” about the war, which has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

It follows Israel denying entry to, and deporting, two Labour MPs who had traveled there as part of a parliamentary delegation.

Abtisam Mohamed and Yuan Yang intended to visit humanitarian aid projects in the West Bank.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy described Israel’s decision as “unacceptable” and “no way to treat British parliamentarians.”

MPs from the Scottish National Party, Plaid Cymru and Sinn Fein also signed Corbyn’s letter, as did members of the House of Lords.

He said he has consistently pursued answers over Britain’s continued sale of F-35 jet components to Israel, the use of British military bases in the war, and the legal definition of genocide, yet he has been met with “evasion, obstruction and silence.”

The government is “leaving the public in the dark over the ways in which the responsibilities of government have been discharged,” Corbyn added.

He warned that history is at risk of “repeating itself,” drawing parallels to the UK’s decision to invade Iraq based on “flawed intelligence and assessments.”

That assessment was found by the Chilcot report into the Iraq war, published in 2016 following numerous delays.

An inquiry into the UK’s ties to the Gaza war “should establish exactly what decisions have been taken, how these decisions have been made and what consequences they have had,” Corbyn said.

“Any meaningful inquiry would require the full cooperation from government ministers involved in decision-making processes since October 2023,” he added.

“Many people believe the government has taken decisions that have implicated officials in the gravest breaches of international law.

“These charges will not go away until there is a comprehensive, public, independent inquiry with the legal power to establish the truth.”