Accident Sculpture

The traffic in Jeddah is frightening – perhaps because only testerone-crazed men are permitted behind the wheel in this country? – and this whimsical sculpture seems to poke fun at the situation. Located along the Red Sea coastline on Jeddah’s beautiful Corniche, The Accident Sculpture is one of Jeddah’s most famous artworks and consists of five cars which appear to have crashed headfirst into an enormous block of solid reinforced concrete. For those of you who have been following this blog and the many Jeddah sculptures I have posted, you may be surprised to learn that the artisan responsible for this unusual piece of art is none other than one of my personal favorites, the Spanish artist Julio Lafuente. Lafuente actually came to Jeddah in the early 1970s as an architect who was responsible for the city’s massive urban beautification program, at a time when Jeddah’s growth exploded at a frenzied pace. The phenomenal expansion and plans for the future took place when many of city’s new roads were unnamed and there were not yet buildings to act as landmarks, especially on the outskirts of the previously existing city boundaries. By erecting large and memorable monuments and sculptures at major intersections, many of which featured roundabouts, it served to make it easier to find one’s way around the city, as well as exposing amazing art to the city’s residents. To this day, most Jeddah businesses and residents are not found by street addresses – for the most part, addresses do not exist. My husband tells me it has to do with privacy, but I ask what business wants or needs privacy?
Among Lafuente’s other works that I have previously posted are: Koranic Verse, The Dallah Fountain, The Holy Koran, The Mameluke Lanterns, The Bicycle, The Illuminated Globe, The Verse Boat, and Science and Religion.