Old Jeddah = Jeddah al-kadîme. [PRESENTATION COPY SIGNED BY MOHAMED SAID FARSÎ THE LORD MAYOR OF JEDDAH, (1937-2019)].

ABDULLAH TELMESANI, FUAD SAROUJI. 

N. p., Spain, [AH 1404] = 1983.

Original creme bdg. HC. Folio. (32,5 x 27 cm). Texts in Arabic with a bilingual title on verso of the cover in English and Arabic. [18] p., [15] unnumbered full paged color plates of the buildings in Jeddah separately tissue papers. Signed and inscribed in Turkish by Cidde emini [i.e. The Lord Mayor of Jeddah] Mohamed Said Farsi, dated 8.5.1984 to Turkish architect Selim Sabuncuoglu as 'Sayin Selim Sabuncuoglu, en güzel temennilerimle Jedda'dan bir hatira. Jeddah emini, Sait Farisi'. Sealed "YÜTAS: Construction Production Industry and Trade Co.". Dr. Mohammed Said Farsi, (1937-2019), was a former Lord Mayor of Jeddah, and a man of such aesthetic integrity that he traveled the world to meet with sculptors, painters, and musicians before replanning the city according to his own meticulously constructed vision. (Source: The Rake). Dr. Farsi was a visionary civic leader and philanthropist who is widely considered to be the father of modern Jeddah. He presided over a five-fold increase in the city’s population, led its transformation, including creating the famous Jeddah corniche - a unique public space and an open-air gallery. Dr. Farsi, a noted art lover, was also the first mayor to introduce Western art and sculpture to an Arab city. He is survived by his son Hani Farsi and former wife Naglaa Asaad. Born in Makkah in 1937, Dr. M S Farsi qualified as an architect in Alexandria and returned to Saudi Arabia in the early 1960s. He entered government service in 1963 and rose rapidly. Just two years later he was appointed to the post of Planning Officer for the Western Region of Saudi Arabia. Covering an area larger than the United Kingdom and having within its boundaries the port city of Jeddah and the Holy Cities of Makkah and Medinah, this territory was in effect Saudi Arabia's window to the world and it was under Dr. Farsi’s aegis that plans for these three cities were drawn up; given the immense significance of this work, Dr. Farsi liaised with the very highest levels of government. In 1972, Dr. Farsi became Mayor of Jeddah, a city that had grown from the historic walled city of his childhood to a large modern conurbation of more than 300,000 people. Until the middle of the following decade, Dr. Farsi presided over a period of spectacular and unprecedented growth for the city, which saw its population increase five-fold. That chaos was averted in the face of such a population explosion was due in no small part to Dr. Farsi’s enlightened leadership. It is remarkable that in the midst of creating much-needed infrastructure, Dr. Farsi found time to create a city that was as beautiful as it was functional; with a carefully preserved historic center, gracious boulevards, and charming parks. A collector of Islamic and Western art, Dr. Farsi’s vision as a city planner was to integrate important contemporary art into public spaces, thus enriching the lives of the inhabitants and reflecting the on-going cultural significance of the city, and his mayoralty is today remembered for its artistic flowering and for being at the forefront of design. Dr. Farsi made use of local artists and materials as well as commissioning works from many great Western masters, including Henry Moore, Victor Vasarely, Alexander Calder, Arnaldo Pomodoro, Joan Miró, Cesar Baldaccini, Sylvestre Monnier, Jean Arp, and Jacques Lipchitz, among many other stellar names in the international art world. He was the first mayor to introduce Western art and sculpture to an Arab city, as well as the first to display art that depicted the physical human form. At the time he stepped down, in 1986, Jeddah boasted over 400 pieces of public art. When he retired in 1986, Dr. Farsi returned to one of his primary passions - education. Within just one year he successfully qualified for his doctorate, attaining a Ph.D. from the University of Alexandria. (Source: Pressat).