Saudi art icon Safeya Binzagr dies at 84

Cairo: Saudi art pioneer Safeya Binzagr, noted for keen interest in the kingdom’s heritage, has died after an illustrious career and a lasting imprint on the art and culture landscape, Saudi media reported. She was 84.

Born in the Saudi port city of Jeddah in 1940, she moved seven years later with the family to Cairo where she attended school until she obtained the high school certificate.

She later travelled to Britain to complete her education where she had the chance to see famed artworks at museums.

Upon her return to the hometown, she discovered the disappearance of many local traditions and architecture that she was familiar with when she was a child. The situation inspired her art vision. “I found an inspiring objective to draw and document customs and traditions for fear of their extinction,” Safeya once said. Her works were famous for capturing and documenting folk culture, heritage costumes, life aspects and architecture in Jeddah.

Seen as among the first founders of the fine art movement in Saudi Arabia, she initiated her long journey with staging her first exhibition in Jeddah 1968.

Later she displayed her works in other Saudi cities including Riyadh, Dharan, Jubail, Medina, Yanbu and Abha. She also organised exhibitions in Paris, Geneva and London with her solo exhibits totalling 18. She, moreover, participated in six group expositions and was a jury member of several exhibits.

In 1995, she founded her own museum known as the Darat Safeya Binzagr that housed her artworks, gallery and library. In 2000, she issued her book “A Three-Decade Journey with Saudi Heritage”.