Ithra Made Its Debut Appearance at the International Frankfurt Book Fair 2022

on Oct 27, 2022

Saudi Arabia's King Abdul Aziz Centre for World Culture, popularly known as Ithra, aspires to expand its work in the fields of art, literature, and music on a global scale after success at the national level. Ithra holds film festivals, musical events, and art exhibitions.

As part of its outreach to the worldwide cultural organizations present, the Dhahran District in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, which is fast becoming known as the country's cultural hub, made its appearance at the international Frankfurt Book Fair, which wrapped on Sunday.

Ithra organized a panel discussion on "The Status of Arabic Literature in the World" by including Saudi author Yousef Al Mohaimeed.

The National, a media outlet, quoted Fatmah Al-Rashid, head of strategy and partnership at Ithra, saying that the team intends to highlight the cultural area and its numerous attractions. "We want to share our narrative. She said, "It is crucial to have conversations with our colleagues from various nations to find potential for collaboration. And that's a center in Saudi Arabia striving to continue cultivating culture at home and abroad.

Al-Rashid told the media house when talking about the Ithra, "Ithra is often one of the first things we are asked: "Isn't this a library?" I'd say that it is a multifaceted cultural hub that does contain a library."

"Even if we look at the library, we want to send the idea that it's not just a location for people to read and borrow books; it's also an institution that organizes programs and events to facilitate content production," Al-Rashid continued.

The $400 million Ithra culture center was constructed by Saudi Aramco and opened in 2017. It is a complex including an arts and children's museum, library, theatre, cinema, and exhibition rooms.

There have also been exhibitions featuring the works of Norwegian expressionist artist Edvard Munch and Leonardo Da Vinci held at the preciously center, in addition to an Islamic art exhibition co-produced with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Notable music organizations that have performed there include the Russian Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra and La Scala from Italy.