Al Saleem reinterprets the Saudi landscape, stylising the horizon of the desert and replacing it with Arabic calligraphy. The painting also exemplifies Al Saleem’s style which he called Horizonism.

Sotheby’s inaugural auction in Saudi Arabia — and the country’s first major international art and luxury auction — topped $17 million in sale, with works by Arab artists setting records.

To everyone’s surprise fine art achieved very solid results, indicating a strong appetite for Saudi and Arab art,” says Rebecca Anne Proctor, the author of the book “Art in Saudi Arabia ...