King Ibn Saud

William H. Johnson, King Ibn Saud, ca. 1945, oil on paperboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.650
Copied William H. Johnson, King Ibn Saud, ca. 1945, oil on paperboard, 35 5⁄8 x 28 5⁄8 in. (90.4 x 72.7 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.650

Artwork Details

Title
King Ibn Saud
Artist
Date
ca. 1945
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
35 5⁄8 x 28 5⁄8 in. (90.4 x 72.7 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of the Harmon Foundation
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on paperboard
Classifications
Subjects
  • Figure group
  • Occupation — other — aristocrat
  • Object — other — flag
  • Architecture — industry — refinery
  • Arabian
  • Portrait male — Saud, Ibn
Object Number
1967.59.650
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1967.59.650

Artwork Description

In this painting Johnson refers to a secret meeting in 1945 between King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia and President Franklin Delano Roosevelt onboard the battleship USS Quincy in the Suez Canal. Johnson shows a larger-than-life Ibn Saud receiving salutes from senior naval officers and the homage of his countrymen. A green flag in the upper center locates the meeting in Egypt; the derricks dotting the arid landscape in the background refer to the recent discovery of petroleum on the Arabian Peninsula. Though Saudi Arabia had remained officially neutral during the war, the country favored the Allies. Roosevelt met with Ibn Saud to secure access to his country's massive oil reserves. The charismatic Roosevelt charmed the powerful king, and the two laid the groundwork for an alliance that continues to the present.

Exhibitions

Media - 1967.59.1146 - SAAM-1967.59.1146_2 - 141130
Fighters for Freedom: William H. Johnson Picturing Justice
March 8, 2024–September 10, 2024
Smithsonian American Art Museum
William H. Johnson's Fighters for Freedom series from the mid-1940s is a tribute to African American activists, scientists, teachers, and performers as well as international leaders working to bring peace to the world.