Kingdom of Sand and Cement: The Shifting Cultural Landscape of Saudi Arabia

by Peter Bogaczewicz, Rodrigo Orrantia (Contribution by), Karen Elliott House (Contribution by), Edward Burtynsky (Foreword by)

Overview

Kingdom of Sand and Cement by Peter Bogaczewicz explores the challenges Saudi Arabia faces today as it rapidly transforms from a conservative and tribal desert culture to an influential world power. In less than a century the Saudis have experienced profound change as they transitioned from living in traditional mud buildings to commencing work on the world’s tallest skyscraper. Examining this legacy through large-format color photographs, Peter Bogaczewicz documents a country of sharp contrasts where visual traces of an old reticent society can be seen in the midst of a burgeoning modern culture reflecting the ambitious agenda of the new King and his charismatic son and successor, the Crown Prince, a decisive risk-taker whose bold policies have received a warm welcome by some, yet have alienated others.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781942084723
Publisher:	Daylight Books
Publication date:	11/19/2019
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	10.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Peter Bogaczewicz is a photographer and an architect. He divides his time between the two disciplines, often blurring the line between them, and uses his photography as a commentary on the built environment and the human community, and how both are changing at a time of rapid progress and increasing global interconnectedness. Peter is based in Toronto, Canada and is currently living in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Interviews

It is unlikely for anyone interested in world affairs not to have heard of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, demonstrating the rapid pace with which the Kingdom has become a global power. Remarkable, considering that not too long ago the Saudi people did not concern themselves with the existence of a world beyond their desert domain. Despite Saudi Arabia’s ascent to global importance—a trajectory started with the 1938 discovery of oil under the Saudi sands—relatively little is known about the Kingdom outside its borders. Its history of seclusion and conservative traditions make it appear opaque and shrouded in mystery still today. Kingdom of Sand and Cement grew out of a curiosity of unmasking that mystery and an interest in documenting a reticent society at a turning point in its history as the Saudis find themselves at a pivotal cultural crossroads. This book aims to present an inquisitive viewer with a thoughtful image of a place vastly different from their own, yet a place that is ultimately not so dissimilar to others in its ambition to progress.

Editorial Reviews

"Examining this legacy through beautiful large-format color photographs, Bogaczewicz documents a country and a society in the midst of an unprecedented change; and the clash of its traditional and modern values reveals a society precariously balancing at a crossroads of old and new." - F-Stop Magazine, April 24, 2020

From the Publisher