If you’re looking for a low-key but interesting day out in Dubai this weekend, nothing will beat spending a few hours perusing the exhibitions on show at the art galleries in the city. Here is Weekend Review’s guide to which exhibitions we’ll be feasting our eyes, ears and minds on. Choose the one that you would like to go to:
1x1 Art Gallery
The Poetics of Absence
Curated by Christiana de Marchi, this exhibition features a string of artists creating with diverse forms to explore themes of travel, documentary, memory and nostalgia; each of which are related to the idea of absence. The contradictions inherent to these themes are exposed: travel is inextricably connected to farewells, photography intends to mitigate nostalgia but increases its effects, and we collect images as “objective” reminders of highly emotional experiences. The mediums on display include video projections, photographs and canvas paintings.
- Until February 28, 2017
Tashkeel Studio and Gallery
New Chapter
Emirati artist Lateefa Bint Maktoum explores the journey of motherhood and the lingering feelings of daily life through a series of carefully constructed digital photographs rich in personal symbolism. “I had a need to produce these photographic works that transcribed the different stages and emotions I went through as I transitioned into motherhood,” she says. “I feel that visitors of the exhibition will be able to relate to the works as they may discover emotions they themselves have been through, or one day will go through.”
- Until February 23, 2017
Green Art Gallery
Daga’a
This video work by Palestinian artist Shadi Habib Allah is on show in the region for the first time after screenings all around Europe. Beginning in Egypt’s militarised Sinai Peninsula, the artist embarks on a journey with Bedouin smugglers who are navigating unmarked terrain. Their venture becomes a site to explore stories and anecdotes, and to reveal the blurred state of the Bedouins in this contested no man’s land. The only signposts are the stories they share about the stakes of living, dying, and moving through this mysterious space. Anecdotes transition into directions and allegiances are blurred, as is the state of the Bedouins, who remain unrecognized citizens of this no man’s land.
Their navigation tactics, a formation of discipline of movement and coordination developed by necessity to evade military patrols, mirrors the militarized mentality of the Egyptian army. These desert outliers who quietly continue their lineage with the help of snakes.
-Until February 7, 2017
Isabelle Van Den Eynde
Receiving and Collecting
This exhibition showcases artist Mohammed Kazem’s attempts to “capture the un-capturable.” Whether it be a photographic series trying to represent the elusive nature of sunlight as it plays upon every day objects, or depicting the sounds in a bar as a visual experience, Kazem’s artworks invite the viewer to expand their imagination and envision what lies beyond sight.
- Until February 23. 2017
Cuadro Fine Art Gallery
Remnants
Three series of work by Abdolreza Aminlari are on display here, each incorporating gold tones and geometric elements to reflect on how the concept of time plays out in our daily lives. The first is a collection of vintage gold threads hand stitched into paper, reminiscent of domestic and factory labour. The second series expands on these, while the third series is a gallery of images captured on iPhone from the artist’s windowsill that capture changing light and the passage of time.
- Until February 18, 2017
Custot Gallery Dubai
Inherit the Dust
Three years after the conclusion of his trilogy, On This Earth, A Shadow Falls and Across the Ravaged Land, Nick Brandt revisits East Africa to photograph and alert us to the fragile ecosystem and increasing urbanisation of the continent’s natural parks and sweeping landscapes. Best known for his intimate depictions of wild animals and their disappearing habitats, the artist captures the human impact in territories where animals used to roam. The exhibition features a series of large-scale black and white panoramas that depict the perishing natural world in contrast with an explosive urban development. For this recent body of work, Brandt has printed and enlarged his animal portraits to life-size, placing them in locations such as factories, underpasses and quarries
- Until February 28, 2017
Ayyam Gallery, Alserkal Avenue
Landmarks II
In this solo exhibition of three-dimensional artworks, Sharjah-based Syrian artist Thaier Halel uses multi-media materials and tactile elements like sand and glue to depict the physical attributes of settings in the natural environment. His artworks evoke the pattern of replenishment and decay that is present in the natural world, and the cycle of birth and regeneration inherent to both humankind and the environment. Although inspired by landforms like the Assi river, Helal’s aim is for the viewer to recognise each site according to their past experiences. His new paintings are sculptural and appeal to the senses with added volume and dimension, providing tactile references to these environments.
- Until March 4, 2017
Ayyam Gallery DIFC
Shapeshifters and Transformations
This collective exhibition brings together five artists from the Arab world to showcase the way that artists are addressing some of the world’s most pressing concerns - from large-scale violence to environmental changes and the development of technology. Centred around the concept of ‘transformation,’ the artworks depict the moments where bodies change, landscapes collapse and regeneration begins. With mediums ranging from video stills to paintings, each artist offers a different outlook on the future.
- Until February 28, 2017
— Natassia Chrysanthos is an intern at Gulf News
