Lavish Concepts has partnered with Dar Layan Culture to bring a collection of titles to a UK audience, most titles for the first time here.
Learn more about Dar Layan Culture through this Q&A with Ghada Altobaishi, Managing Director.
Dar Layan Culture’s collection spans art, archaeology, heritage and history. What inspired the creation of these works, and what guided your decision to bring these nine titles together?
The inspiration behind Dar Layan Culture’s work comes from a desire to present Saudi Arabia’s and the region’s landscapes, histories and artistic traditions through detailed and structured presentation. Each title reflects a subject we consider foundational, from Al Rabadhah: A Portrait of Early Islamic Civilization to The Camel Through the Ages. Bringing these works together allowed Dar Layan Culture to create a coherent cultural record that preserves significant sites, visual traditions and historical narratives for readers and institutions.
When you imagine someone engaging with these titles, who do you see? What kind of reader do you hope feels connected to the themes and perspectives they explore?
We envision readers who seek informed cultural material, people who want to understand heritage through landscape, history and archaeological evidence. These titles are intended for scholars, curators, librarians, artists, and culturally engaged readers. Whether someone is drawn to the artistic evolution captured in Transformations of Saudi Visual Art or the fine art perspective in An Eye on the Saudi and Arab Fine Art, we hope they find a deeper connection to the region’s cultural environment.
You chose to bring these titles to the UK through Lavish Concepts. What motivated that decision, and what do you hope UK readers will gain from encountering these works?
We brought the titles to the UK through our partnership with Lavish Concepts as they are a strong cultural bridging paltform in London. We know the country’s libraries, museums and academic institutions actively build collections that reflect global landscapes and histories. They would appreciate this collection. Works such as Attawheed and The Three Holy Mosques complement existing scholarship and naturally create points of cultural bridging through shared interest in heritage and historical documentation. Our hope is that UK readers encounter Saudi history, art and archaeology through titles that combine research, narrative structure and visual documentation, enriching collections.
How do you present these narratives in a way that feels relevant and resonant for today’s audience?
We present cultural narratives by grounding them in place, in landscapes, archaeological sites and historical context, and pairing that with structured visual storytelling. Titles like The Cosmic Script (published in the UK) – shows the art of Arabic and Islamic penmanship from the 10th century to the present day. Artistic narratives can be presented in a way that feels both contemporary and enduring. Dar Layan Culture ensures these works speak to today’s readers too.
Of the all the titles, which one resonates with you personally, and why does it stand out for you?
The Ultimate Journey resonates with me most though all of them are brilliant. The project brought together thirty‑four artists from eighteen countries to create paintings inspired by the Grand Mosque in Makkah, the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah, and Al‑Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, and the book stands out because it documents that creative process and the meaning behind each work. We later presented a these paintings in the UK through an exhibition developed in collaboration with the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies.
A selection of these books will be part of the showcase this week (Tuesday 21 and Wednesday 22 July 10am-6pm) – a Lavish Concepts collaboration with Sotheby’s International Realty (Knightsbridge)
