Latest news with #Al-QattAl-Asiri
Leaders
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Leaders
Wrth Preserves Al-Qatt Al-Asiri Art through Training Program
The Royal Institute of Traditional Arts (Wrth) has urged all Al-Qatt Al-Asiri enthusiasts to register in a specialized training program in July, according to the Saudi Press Agency. In collaboration with Soudah Development Company, the program will run from July 27 to 31 in Asir Region as part of joint efforts to promote cultural heritage in the Al-Soudah Tourism Project. The program represents an integral part of Wrth's initiatives to ensure the survival of Al-Qatt Al-Asiri art and offer rare glimpses into its history and aesthetic components. Al-Qatt Al-Asiri Art To this end, the program will provide participants with practical training in creating natural colors and mastering traditional artistic techniques. Al-Qatt Al-Asiri Known as Al-Qatt, Al-Katba, or Al-Zayan, women in Asir were painting this old art on the walls offering stunning appearance in front of Saudi homes. In 2017, it received international recognition after being registered on the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Wrth Al-Qatt Al-Asiri Art As a prestigious destination depicting Saudi national identity, Wrth seeks to showcase Saudi traditional arts at both local and global stages. The institute also preserves Saudi cultural heritage and supports national talents through several initiatives and exhibitions. If you are interested in the program, you can apply through the link below: القط العسيري | يوليو -أبها | المعهد الملكي للفنون التقليدية Related Topics: Saudi Artist Devotes Life to Documenting Al-Qatt Al-Asiri Art Wrth Fosters Saudi Crafts Sector with Aseer Authority Riyadh's Royal Institute Launches Wrth Community Craft Initiative Short link : Post Views: 7 Related Stories
Saudi Gazette
18-07-2025
- General
- Saudi Gazette
Royal Institute for Traditional Arts launches training on Al-Qatt Al-Asiri art
Saudi Gazette report ASIR — The Royal Institute for Traditional Arts (Wirrth), in collaboration with Soudah Development, has announced the opening of registration for a specialized training program on the traditional Saudi art of Al-Qatt Al-Asiri, to be held from July 27 to 31, 2025, in the Asir region. The initiative supports shared efforts to promote cultural heritage within the Soudah tourism project. The training is part of the institute's continuing education programs and aims to introduce participants to the historical and aesthetic significance of Al-Qatt Al-Asiri—a UNESCO-listed art form known for its geometric wall patterns and vibrant motifs inspired by nature. The program includes practical sessions on crafting natural pigments and applying traditional artistic techniques. This initiative reflects the institute's ongoing mission to empower local talent and promote entrepreneurship in traditional arts, highlighting the role of crafts in strengthening cultural a national institution dedicated to preserving Saudi traditional arts, Wirrth supports outstanding practitioners and living human treasures, offering opportunities for learning and passing on these skills to future generations.
Saudi Gazette
27-05-2025
- Business
- Saudi Gazette
Aseer draws 8 million tourists in 2024, minister says
Saudi Gazette report ABHA — Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb announced that Aseer Region welcomed around 8 million tourists in 2024, positioning it as one of Saudi Arabia's leading tourism destinations. The announcement came on Tuesday during his participation in the second edition of the Aseer Investment Forum. Al-Khateeb highlighted Aseer's unique natural and cultural assets, saying they make the region an increasingly attractive environment for tourism investment. He revealed that the region's hospitality sector is set to expand with the addition of nearly 4,000 new hotel rooms in the coming years, supported by Saudi Arabia's broader tourism ecosystem. The minister also underscored the ministry's ongoing efforts to attract global hospitality brands, many of which are now eyeing Aseer due to its untapped potential and growing emphasized the crucial role of the local community, especially Aseer's youth, in delivering an authentic and memorable tourism noted that Aseer has evolved beyond its traditional image as a seasonal summer destination, becoming a year-round attraction thanks to its rich environmental and cultural the region's key cultural draws are Asiri arts such as Al-Qatt Al-Asiri, traditional clothing, and local cuisine, all of which have helped shape a distinctive tourism identity for the region.
Leaders
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Leaders
Saudi Artist Devotes Life to Documenting Al-Qatt Al-Asiri Art
Saudi visual artist Ibrahim Al-Almaai has devoted more than three decades of his life to documenting Al-Qatt Al-Asiri, a vibrant traditional art in the Asir region, according to the Saudi Press Agency. Known as Al-Qatt, Al-Katba, or Al-Zayan, women in Asir were painting this old art on the walls offering stunning appearance in front of Saudi homes. In 2017, it received international recognition after being registered on the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Al-Almaai stressed that for the past 33 years he was visiting several villages in the eastern, western, northern, or central parts of the Asir region. He said that his mission was to look for any remnants of this heritage art in homes, indicating that many of which have been lost due to time and weather. Fortunately, Al-Almaai has documented over 1,200 variations of Al-Qatt patterns and colors despite various challenges. He further noted that there are four key components of a typical heritage home adorned with Al-Qatt, as follows: Al Shabaka (the Network) are single-colored, interlaced lines that create the structural foundation of the design. Al-Hanash (the Snake) are serpent-like motifs inspired by the Coluber snake. Al-Khatmah or Al-Akhtam (the Seal) represent a form of visual closure at the end of a design. Al-Qatt (the Lines) are the horizontal strokes layered under the primary art, generally known as Al-Katba (the Writing), Al-Naqsh (the Inscription), or Al-Zayan (the Adornment) depending on the local dialect. Related Topics: Saudi Artist Collaborates with Sephora for Founding Day Illustrations Silver Handicrafts Showcase Saudi Arabia's Cultural Richness, Artistic Legacy Saudi Artist Muhannad Shono to Illuminate Desert X 2025 Short link : Post Views: 14 Related Stories
CairoScene
17-04-2025
- CairoScene
This Ancient ‘Gingerbread Village' Is Carved Into Saudi's Mountains
This Ancient 'Gingerbread Village' Is Carved Into Saudi's Mountains The road from Abha descends through the Asir mountains, curving past ridges softened by mist and valleys stitched with green terraces. Some fifty miles from the city, at the base of a steep incline, lies Rijal Almaa—a village so quiet, so composed, it seems to have emerged fully formed from the stone itself. At first glance, you might miss it. The buildings—tall, stacked, angular—cling to the earth like outcrops, their forms echoing the rhythm of the hills. But then the road straightens, the valley opens, and the village reveals itself in full: towers of stone and clay, rimmed in white, their windows catching the sun like mirrors. For centuries, this place was a resting point—traders passing through from Yemen to the Levant, pilgrims on their way to Makkah and Madinah. The village rose from the necessities of exchange, of shelter, of spiritual pause. Yet what was built here went beyond utility. Today, Rijal Almaa feels less like a crossroads and more like a memory preserved in architecture. There are roughly sixty buildings in the village, many of them rising five, six, even eight stories high. Constructed from dark stone, clay, and wood, the structures are sometimes called "forts," though their elegance makes the word feel too blunt. The façades are studded with white crystal stones. Inside, the walls bloom with Al-Qatt Al-Asiri—a form of geometric mural painting passed down through generations of women. The colours are bright, sometimes clashing, always intentional. The effect is one of quiet rebellion: a burst of expression inside walls meant to keep the desert out. At the center of it all is the Rijal Almaa Heritage Museum, housed in what was once the Al Alwan Palace. Over four centuries old, the building now contains more than 2,000 artifacts—manuscripts, tools, weapons, objects from lives once lived here. Though time frayed its edges, the village never truly disappeared. In recent years, restoration efforts—led by national bodies and supported by the local community—have brought Rijal Almaa into the present without sanding down its character. An open-air theater now hosts performances against a backdrop of stone towers; green spaces spread where once there were only rocks. In 2021, the World Tourism Organization named it one of the best tourism villages in the world. It remains on Saudi Arabia's tentative list for UNESCO World Heritage status. Despite everything, the feeling Rijal Almaa leaves is older than any plaque or award. Visitors walk narrow alleys where camels once passed. They see the mountains framed through windows once opened to catch the evening light. They move through a village where everything—the towers, the art, the quiet—is still speaking, if you know how to listen.
