AOC, PMTs celebrate Saudi National Day

THE HAGUE, the Netherlands – His Excellency the Saudi Ambassador Mr. Abdullah Al Shagrood hosted a highly successful event in celebration of Saudi Arabia’s National Day at his residence in The Hague on September 22. 

By Chili Li

Aramco Overseas Company B.V., supported this event and arranged for different booths representing four different cultural and artistic aspects of The Kingdom including: The History of the Saudi Arabian Monarchy, The Black Arch, and The Aramco History Photo Gallery, along with a Saudi Aramco booth reflecting different areas of our operations, attracting more than 600 guests in the evening.  

Showcasing the contemporary artwork entitled The Black Arch, created by two female Saudi artists, Raja Alem and Shadia Alem, was the highlight of the evening. Both artists were present at the celebration, walking guests through the photos and video showing the art piece, while explaining to the guests their ideas behind its creation. The actual art piece is being exhibited at the Saudi Arabia Pavilion at Venice Biennale. The artwork is a polished steel oval, standing up like a dark looking glass, bright on one side, veiled on the other, is held on the ground by a surface of the same size, consisting of chrome marbles, arranged in circles around a cubic form, which itself encloses another small cube brimming with pebbles. These two surfaces, one vertical, the other horizontal, each a projection of the other, are joined together by their reflections and images.

Among the guests were many representatives of cultural institutions and diplomatic entities including Prof Dr. Sibrandes Poppema, president of Groningen University; Jan Willem Overdijk, Marketing Director of the NEMO Science Center; representatives from the Dutch Ministry of culture and education. All guests had the opportunity to learn about the contemporary artwork and had the chance to speak to the artists about their ideas and inspiration. Guests also took the opportunity to walk through other booths at the venue to learn the history of the Kingdom and Saudi Aramco. 

Nabil Aldabal, Managing Director of Aramco Overseas Company B.V., said about the event and the support: “The Saudi National Day (SND) celebration is a great occasion to introduce different aspects of The Kingdom to a variety of audiences in The Netherlands. AOC is honored to be involved in such an event. We believe we can play an important role in promoting the image of the Kingdom and Saudi Aramco as the energy supplier to the world.”

 “The Black Arch is a great example of showcasing the modern image of Saudi Arabia, and this will definitely bring about new ideas of collaborations between many cultural and educational institutions in The Netherlands and The Kingdom,” Aldabal added.

Meanwhile, Saudi Aramco’s project management teams (PMTs) also celebrated the occasion with the support of AOC UK’s public relations team, who supplied the Chapter 8 employees with SND paraphernalia including flags, caps and wrist bands, as well as a cake for staff.