Faris Alrushud, Riyadh

The Saudi National Museum commemorated Japanese victims of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami on Friday through launching an exhibition named "Beautiful Handicrafts in Tohoku, Japan.”

Charge d'Affairs ad interim of the embassy of Japan to Saudi Arabia, Miyake Hirofumi, inaugurated the iconic museum along with the Director General of the Saudi National Museum, Abdullah Al-Zahrani.

Hirofumi explained that the exhibition is an affirmation of the strong bilateral relationship between Saudi Arabia and Japan, as well as an illumination of the cooperation achieved between the two countries within the Saudi Japanese vision 2030 framework. He then thanked everyone that contributed to the establishment of the exhibition, which was opened for the first time in Saudi Arabia, and expressed his interest in opening more exhibitions to further strengthen the bilateral and historic ties between Saudi Arabia and Japan.

The attendees were given a tour of the exhibition, where they were introduced to Japanese art and craftwork, which varied from wooden bowls, embroidery, dyeing, knitting, weaving baskets, pots, utensils, woodwork, to ancient Japanese drawings.

The exhibition marks the anniversary of the catastrophic Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in 2011. Tohoku traditions are distinctively presented throughout the gallery, shedding light on an enumeration of ancient artistic techniques and artifacts, which were all made in attempt to regain what was lost when the area was pummeled with natural disasters.

Starting Friday, Feb. 7, the exhibition will be open at the National Museum of Saudi Arabia, King Abdul Aziz Historical Centre, King Faisal Road, Riyadh, every day until February 28, from 8 a.m.to 8 p.m. Except for Friday, where opening hours are from 4 p.m. until 8 p.m., and Sunday, where opening hours are from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.