DIA AZIZ DIA (B. 1947), UNTITLED

signed Dia in Arabic and English and dated 3-8-69 in English (lower left)

oil on canvas mounted on board

120 by 60 cm. 47 ¼ by 23 ½ in.

Framed: 135.5 by 75.5 cm. 53 ½ by 29 ¾ in.

Executed in 1969. 

Jeddah, Gold Moor Mall, Saudi Arabia Art Council: Fast Forward, 3 March - 22 April 2015

Hailing from Cairo before relocating to Jeddah, Dia Aziz Dia is one of Saudi Arabia’s early artistic pioneers with a practice encompassing painting, sculpture and photography. Dia was sent to Rome on a state-funded scholarship in 1971, where he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts. There, he was heavily influenced by surrealism that is especially observable in his early portrait works. Though he worked as an art teacher following his graduation, he felt this job stifled his own artistic career and decided to fully devote himself to his practice. Dia started his own business with Mas Institute of Art from 1971-1979 and later joined Saudia Airlines as an administrative director of office design in 1980. For Dia, his daily surroundings became the subjects of his paintings, imparting his compositions with geographical and architectural influences that skilfully captured the light and colour of his environment. Alongside his contributions to the fine arts in the broader Arab world, he has contributed immensely to the Kingdom’s artistic landscape, heading the board of Saudi Centre for Fine Arts in 1987 and remaining a long-term member of the Saudi Arts and Culture Society. Dia has produced key public works including the gate of Mecca, a sculptural monument which greets travellers crossing the Mecca-Jeddah Highway to enter the city. Dia’s illustrious career has been recognised with several awards, including from the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and the Equestrian Club in Riyadh in 2012. He has been widely exhibited, notably including at the Al-Mansouria Foundation in 2004, and as representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the 11th Kuwait Exhibition for Arab Artists.