Riyadh Art, a public art initiative led by the Royal Commission for Riyadh City, is expanding its Permanent Collection with 115 new installations planned through 2026 and beyond, adding to the 75 works already installed across the Saudi capital. The collection includes works by international artists such as Alexander Calder, Anish Kapoor, Jeff Koons, Giuseppe Penone, and Ugo Rondinone, alongside Saudi practitioners like Zaman Jassim and Mohammed Al Saleem, with recent additions including Calder's 'Janey Waney' and Nobuo Sekine's 'Phase of Nothingness'.
This expansion matters because Riyadh Art is one of the largest public art initiatives of its kind, embedding artworks across transport corridors, plazas, and urban spaces rather than confining them to a cultural district. By integrating contemporary commissions with historically significant works—including restored pieces by Saudi modernist Mohammed Al Saleem—the project redefines how art is encountered in daily life and positions the city itself as a primary site of artistic engagement, potentially serving as a model for urban-scale public art worldwide.