Eastern Province Governor Honors Winners of ' Mujassam Watan' Competition in its Fifth Season
The Governor of the Eastern Province, His Royal Highness Prince Saud bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz, received today, Wednesday, at the Emirate Court, Mr. Abdullah bin Abdul Latif Al-Fozan, President of the Al-Fozan Board of Trustees for Community Service, accompanied by the members of the Mujassam Watan Competition board and the winners of the fifth season of the competition.
His Royal Highness appreciated the prize's significance and the participants' dedication to serving the region and enhancing the urban landscape, thereby positively impacting the quality of life and achieving the aspirations of the Kingdom's Vision 2030, as guided by Allah.
Abdullah Al-Fozan acknowledged the substantial support that the competition has received from His Royal Highness since its inception. He stated that the occasion aimed to paint a different picture of the cities, meeting the expectations of Vision 2030 to improve the urban landscape, modernize the cities, enhance the quality of life, and achieve the competition's slogan, reflecting the culture and values of the nation.
Names of the Winners
The “Mujassam Watan” competition announced the victory of the projects: "Saaf Square," "Al-Ajrab Square," "Al-Thawad Square," and "Our Land’s Sculpture" The winning works were selected by the judging committee based on several criteria, including the conceptual idea, sensory features, and construction details
After sorting through more than 150 entries from various regions of the Kingdom and across various disciplines, a shortlist of candidates was compiled, and subsequently, the winners were selected.
Rich Heritage Reserve
Dr. Mashary bin Abdullah Al Naim, the Secretary-General of the award, stated that understanding the heritage stock contributes to creating unprecedented design sculptures. He affirmed that humans created the place, and that the competition invests in innovators to build the identity of cities from the spirit of our history and culture. Al-Naim invited all innovators to participate in the upcoming sixth season to make a distinctive mark in the urban, architectural, and artistic levels, offering works that align with the community's aspirations.
He explained that the entries in the fifth season were filtered down to 55 shortlisted entries, categorized into two groups, and then the winners were chosen based on additional criteria, including the strength of the conceptual proposal, the authenticity of the idea, the aesthetic of the product, and its composition. He added that the past five seasons have been a qualitative leap in highlighting and creating a competitive environment to express love for the country through captivating and inspiring sculptures.
Al-Naim added: "The Saaf Square symbolizes the sword of the founder of the second Saudi state, Imam Turki bin Abdullah, the most famous in the history of Arab swords. Meanwhile, the Saaf Palm Square represents the craft of furniture-making from palm fronds, a craft for which the Eastern Province is well known. The Al-Thawad Square symbolizes camels and their connection to the glorious past, designed interactively for educational purposes. The Our Land Sculpture embodies the nature and topography of our land and our rich culture, integrating with diverse cultures."
Mujassam Watan competition is an annual national competition that attracts competitive works to be materialized as sculptures on the National Day each year. Several sculptures have been executed in previous seasons, such as Al-Birq Square, Anan Al-Sama Square, the ‘Arda Square, and on the National Day of the 93rd, the founding sculpture was inaugurated.
