Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Humanitarian City Art Collection

One of the largest – if not the largest – collection of contemporary Saudi art in the world is housed in one of Riyadh’s most beautifully designed hospital complexes.

The Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Humanitarian City is a 400-bed Rehabilitation Hospital and Medical Centre which opened on the 30th October 2002.

Housed on a 296-acre site lying 30kms north of the city centre, with 4.9 acres of interconnecting buildings, the hospital offers specialised, comprehensive care to patients with physical, congenital, and perceptual disabilities, preparing them for a safe return to family life. It has been funded by the Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Foundation – whose Secretary General is HRH Prince Faisal Bin Sultan Bin Abdulaziz – to the tune of well over SR1.2bn.

It’s a sad fact that in Saudi Arabia some 3.5 percent of the total population are disabled in some way. One of the major contributors is endemic diabetes and around 8,000 people become amputees as a result of complications of this disease every year. Spinal cord injuries, as a result of car accidents, are also one of the hospital’s specialities, along with brain injuries. In addition to the city’s 18 operating theatres, there is a 240-bed Medical Rehabilitation Centre – a Recovery Centre which delivers rehabilitation and medical care for the elderly, an Ambulatory Services Centre – which includes a full complement of consultative clinics, and a Child Development Centre – serving children up to the age of 10 years old.

Throughout the complex, in corridors, offices, waiting areas and almost anywhere there is wall space, is a plethora of pictures in oils, pastels and sketches showing off the very best of contemporary Saudi artistic talent.

Naturally, this collection is not designed for the general public simply to wander in and admire at their leisure. But many people who visit the Humanitarian City, either on business or to see a patient, may not be aware of the scale of the collection, or that these pictures even exist.

And with the stunning park-like setting of this complex, which features a water course running through the middle of the grounds, this is one hospital that is simply unforgettable.

The Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Humanitarian City can be found 30kms north of central Riyadh.

Take the King Fahd Highway northbound, signposted to Qassim, and leave at exit 6 (Banban). The hospital complex is clearly singposted on the west side of the main road.

Tel: 01 562 0000

Entrance to the grounds: 24 59.28’ N; 46 31.68' E