We are pleased to announce the launch of an intensive six-month stonemasonry training programme delivered by the Traditional Building Cultures Foundation in the Asir region of Saudi Arabia, in collaboration with the Royal Institute of Traditional Arts (WRTH), as part of the Traditional Stone Building Techniques Apprenticeship Programme.
The training programme, which will run from August 2026 to January 2027, is structured around a series of successive modules combining theoretical content with a substantial practical component. Over the coming months, students will learn the principles, techniques and processes of traditional stone construction, with particular attention to the building systems historically developed in the mountainous region of Asir, whose architecture forms a fundamental part of the region’s cultural identity and landscape.
The different modules will be taught by stonemasons, masons, architects and other highly regarded professionals with extensive experience in traditional construction, building crafts and heritage preservation, with whom the Foundation has been pleased to collaborate. The theoretical sessions, demonstrations and practical work will progressively address topics such as the selection and preparation of materials, stonemasonry and masonry techniques, the different construction processes, and the criteria required to intervene appropriately in the region’s buildings.
During the second half of the programme, the training will move beyond the workshop to a real project: the restoration of a mosque. Students will thus be able to put into practice the knowledge and skills acquired during the first months and face the conditions and challenges involved in working on an existing building. This experience will directly connect the learning of the craft with the preservation of Asir’s built heritage.
At a time when much of this knowledge and many of these techniques are at risk of disappearing, the programme aims to support their transmission to a new generation of professionals and help ensure that they remain part of the region’s building practices.
This purpose, however, is not limited to the restoration of buildings. Knowledge of the materials, techniques and principles that have shaped the traditional architecture of Asir also provides a foundation for new architecture and the region’s future urban development. Training a new generation of professionals capable of understanding and applying this knowledge will help ensure that new buildings continue the local architectural tradition and respond to Asir’s distinctive cultural, constructional and landscape characteristics.
Through this collaboration, the organising institutions aim to contribute to the preservation and transmission of the knowledge associated with Asir’s architectural heritage and to the continuity of its building culture as a living body of knowledge, capable of being applied both to the restoration of existing buildings and to new architecture and the future development of the region.
