Filipino artists in Al Khobar show at Saudi National Day exhibition and paint for charity

Al Khobar-based Filipino artists exhibited at a Saudi National Day art show in September, and Arab News reports they donate paintings to causes from medical aid to Mangyan communities and scholarships back home.

Filipino artists in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province are using their talent to give back to the community both in the Kingdom and back home, Arab News reported on 11 October, after several of them showed work at a Saudi National Day exhibition in Al Khobar.

The three-day "Art Through the Spirit of a Nation" exhibition, held from 23 to 25 September at Somerset Downtown Al Khobar, celebrated the Kingdom's 96th National Day and featured more than 20 artists from Saudi Arabia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Pakistan, India, Malaysia and Romania, The Filipino Times reported. The Filipino artists included Jose Rex Navarrosa, Ysmael Raul Salanguste, Wellington Somera Jr. and Marcelino Gallos Gado, all based in Al Khobar.

Abdulaziz Al-Subaie, president of the Nokhba Hawi Platform for Visual Arts, attended and expressed support for developing the talents of artists from different nationalities, including Filipinos. Young artists and students from Almajd International School, Al Hussan Schools and Wonder Minds also showed work.

An Aramco architect who paints in watercolour

Salanguste, a Northern Samar native and senior architect at Aramco, has lived in the Eastern Province since 1993. In watercolours, he paints what he sees around him, such as a landscape, an old building or a corniche at twilight. He told Arab News he once gave a painting of a mosque to a Saudi man who wanted to buy it, and that he donates his work to help people who need financial support for medical care.

"Art is such a powerful way to connect cultures and build relationships."

Paintings auctioned for Mangyan communities

Somera, a radiologic technologist from Cagayan Valley, has lived in Saudi Arabia since 2012 and became involved in the art scene in 2018, trying to form a group of Filipino artists. He said they have donated paintings for auction, with the proceeds going directly to Mangyan communities in Mindoro. One of his National Day works showed a World Cup football on top of the Aramco Stadium, a core official stadium for Saudi Arabia's hosting of the 2034 FIFA World Cup.

A gallery planned for Romblon

Gado, a finance professional who has spent two decades in Saudi Arabia, paints themes of his homeland, with family members as models and native Philippine flora and motifs. He plans to open a gallery when he returns to Romblon. For now, he was asked to donate artwork for auction at a charity gala called "Plate of Hope", and he donates one artwork each year to the Saudi chapter of the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants, whose gala supports a scholarship foundation in the Philippines.

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