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Lot Essay
From the Estate of the Artist himself, Khibayti is an exceptionally rare hand-carved wooden work by Abdul Halim Radwi, marking the first time that a work by the artist in this medium appears on the market. Executed in 1994, the piece offers a distinctive representation of Saudi Arabia’s traditions, honour and identity, rendered through an amalgamation of figuration and abstraction characteristic of Radwi’s oeuvre.
The composition depicts a moment from Khibayti, a traditional folk performing art associated with the western region of Saudi Arabia, particularly the Hijaz. Characterised by rhythmic movement, poetic chants and percussion, the performance forms part of a rich tradition of popular arts that have long accompanied social gatherings and celebrations across the region. The rhythm forms the backbone of the performance, with dancers moving in harmony with the beat of the drums and the melodies of instruments including the mizmar or bous. The dancers traditionally wear the distinctive thobe al-Huwaishi, a wide, pleated garment whose loose structure expands dramatically with movement, particularly as the dancer turns, momentarily creating an almost circular silhouette. The garment therefore becomes an extension of the dance itself, translating rhythm into movement and movement into form. Radwi captures this sense of collective energy through his arrangement of figures, who appear to move in unison to the rhythm of the performance. The unity between them is further visualised through the interplay of carved lines across the wooden surface, each form appearing connected as though traced by a single continuous stroke.
This abstracted and contemporary rendering stands in striking dialogue with the traditional hand-carving technique and the use of primary colours, reflecting Radwi’s ongoing exploration of the relationship between cultural heritage and modernity. Unlike other hand-carved works in which the artist leaves the wood unpainted, allowing its natural texture to remain visible, the present work is animated by vivid tones of blue, yellow and orange that echo the luminous palette of his canvas works. In this way, the work occupies an important position within Radwi’s practice, bridging the distinct dimensions of his artistic production and demonstrating the artist’s ability to translate his visual language across different media.
Radwi’s depiction of Khibayti is deeply rooted in his engagement with the cultural practices that surrounded him. As General Director of Culture and Arts of Jeddah from 1980 to 1992, he occupied a position at the heart of the city’s cultural life, while his broader practice consistently drew upon the traditions, landscapes and everyday experiences of Saudi Arabia. His engagement with local performers and cultural gatherings further informed his sustained interest in preserving the visual and intangible heritage of his surroundings. This personal connection is significant within the context of his wider oeuvre, in which scenes drawn from lived experience frequently became a means of preserving and transmitting cultural memory.
In the present work, this impulse is given tangible form. The dancers, bound together through rhythm and gesture, transform the wooden surface into a record of collective movement and shared experience. This piece becomes an archive of cultural memory, embodying ideas of community, celebration and cultural belonging. At the same time, Radwi’s synthesis of traditional subject matter, hand-carved form and modernist abstraction reflects his broader ambition to articulate a distinctly Saudi visual language—one in which the preservation of heritage and the possibilities of contemporary artistic expression exist in dynamic dialogue.
Abdul Halim Radwi stands among the pioneering figures of Saudi modernism. Born in Mecca in 1939, he developed a rich and expansive artistic practice encompassing painting, sculpture, and public commissions, though he remains especially celebrated for his evocative cityscapes. Becoming one of the first Saudi artists to pursue a formal art education abroad, Radwi earned his BA from the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome in 1964 and later a doctorate from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid in 1979. Radwi developed a distinctive visual language that brought the vocabulary of international modernism into dialogue with the landscapes, architecture, traditions and lived experience of Saudi Arabia. His compositions embody this synthesis, balancing abstraction with architectural structure to evoke memory, place and emotion.
Radwi's works have been presented in exhibitions internationally and are held in several prominent institutional and private collections, including Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha; Ramzi and Saeda Dalloul Art Foundation (DAF), Beirut and Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.
The composition depicts a moment from Khibayti, a traditional folk performing art associated with the western region of Saudi Arabia, particularly the Hijaz. Characterised by rhythmic movement, poetic chants and percussion, the performance forms part of a rich tradition of popular arts that have long accompanied social gatherings and celebrations across the region. The rhythm forms the backbone of the performance, with dancers moving in harmony with the beat of the drums and the melodies of instruments including the mizmar or bous. The dancers traditionally wear the distinctive thobe al-Huwaishi, a wide, pleated garment whose loose structure expands dramatically with movement, particularly as the dancer turns, momentarily creating an almost circular silhouette. The garment therefore becomes an extension of the dance itself, translating rhythm into movement and movement into form. Radwi captures this sense of collective energy through his arrangement of figures, who appear to move in unison to the rhythm of the performance. The unity between them is further visualised through the interplay of carved lines across the wooden surface, each form appearing connected as though traced by a single continuous stroke.
This abstracted and contemporary rendering stands in striking dialogue with the traditional hand-carving technique and the use of primary colours, reflecting Radwi’s ongoing exploration of the relationship between cultural heritage and modernity. Unlike other hand-carved works in which the artist leaves the wood unpainted, allowing its natural texture to remain visible, the present work is animated by vivid tones of blue, yellow and orange that echo the luminous palette of his canvas works. In this way, the work occupies an important position within Radwi’s practice, bridging the distinct dimensions of his artistic production and demonstrating the artist’s ability to translate his visual language across different media.
Radwi’s depiction of Khibayti is deeply rooted in his engagement with the cultural practices that surrounded him. As General Director of Culture and Arts of Jeddah from 1980 to 1992, he occupied a position at the heart of the city’s cultural life, while his broader practice consistently drew upon the traditions, landscapes and everyday experiences of Saudi Arabia. His engagement with local performers and cultural gatherings further informed his sustained interest in preserving the visual and intangible heritage of his surroundings. This personal connection is significant within the context of his wider oeuvre, in which scenes drawn from lived experience frequently became a means of preserving and transmitting cultural memory.
In the present work, this impulse is given tangible form. The dancers, bound together through rhythm and gesture, transform the wooden surface into a record of collective movement and shared experience. This piece becomes an archive of cultural memory, embodying ideas of community, celebration and cultural belonging. At the same time, Radwi’s synthesis of traditional subject matter, hand-carved form and modernist abstraction reflects his broader ambition to articulate a distinctly Saudi visual language—one in which the preservation of heritage and the possibilities of contemporary artistic expression exist in dynamic dialogue.
Abdul Halim Radwi stands among the pioneering figures of Saudi modernism. Born in Mecca in 1939, he developed a rich and expansive artistic practice encompassing painting, sculpture, and public commissions, though he remains especially celebrated for his evocative cityscapes. Becoming one of the first Saudi artists to pursue a formal art education abroad, Radwi earned his BA from the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome in 1964 and later a doctorate from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid in 1979. Radwi developed a distinctive visual language that brought the vocabulary of international modernism into dialogue with the landscapes, architecture, traditions and lived experience of Saudi Arabia. His compositions embody this synthesis, balancing abstraction with architectural structure to evoke memory, place and emotion.
Radwi's works have been presented in exhibitions internationally and are held in several prominent institutional and private collections, including Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha; Ramzi and Saeda Dalloul Art Foundation (DAF), Beirut and Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah.