Inside the Children’s Biennale at Abu Dhabi's Umm Al Emarat Park

Abu Dhabi: What happens when children are invited not simply to look at art, but to become part of it? At Abu Dhabi’s Umm Al Emarat Park, the Children’s Biennale, from 6 November 2026 to 6 December 2026, offers an answer through a collection of interactive installations, imaginative landscapes and creative encounters that encourage young visitors to slow down, explore and see the world differently.

Bringing together artists working across sculpture, textiles, storytelling, sound and environmental education, the Biennale places children at the centre of the artistic experience.

As the Curator Dr. Dana Al Mazrouei explains, the Biennale is not defined solely by whether children make the artwork or simply come to enjoy it. Rather, it is about putting their experiences first: considering how they encounter art, what they take from it and how they respond.

What one sees and how they pursue it

Alongside the installations, activating programmes and workshops are all opportunities for children and families to engage more deeply with the ideas behind each project. It is an exhibition that feels less like a traditional art display and more like an invitation to play, imagine and discover.

As we walk into the park, we first meet with the artwork of Aya Afaneh, where she redefines the imagination of a child. Then came the jerboa hidden among the garden landscaping, that slowly stands in silence.

Walking through, “Nada and UTR Studios are thinking about the concept of garden,” said Dr Al Mazrouei, while moving towards the instalments divided in past, present and future.

Imagining the Unseen

For Artist Aya Afaneh, the starting point of Cosmo Conste was an invitation to imagine animals found in the UAE that are not commonly encountered. Inspired by fish, her work grew from a question: what if children were asked to create creatures that exist in their environment but remain largely unseen?

Through character-building and storytelling, children are encouraged to develop animals with distinctive features, personalities and narratives. The emphasis is on imagining the world where the creatures inhabits and the story it might tell.

A similar curiosity lies at the heart of Alya Alshamsi’s Wonder What Hides. Her project introduces something uncommon into the familiar landscape of the park, including the jerboa, or yarbou’, a small desert rodent native to the region.

Although found in the UAE desert, it is not an animal visitors are likely to encounter during an ordinary walk through the park.

As the surrounding bushes grow, the animal will gradually become less visible, blending into its environment. The installation encourages children to pause, look closely and notice details they might otherwise overlook.

Playing and replaying but this time something new

For Egyptian artist Hana El-Sagini, based in Dubai, play becomes a way of exploring connection in Common Thread, Common Ground.

Her installation consists of ambiguous, organic forms that deliberately has no single interpretation.

“Each child can make their own idea of what these pieces are. Are they corals out of the water? Are they dates from the palm trees? Are they bones? Depending on their imagination, children might see coral removed from the sea, dates from palm trees, bones or something entirely different,” said artist Hana, as she walked the viewers through her installation.

Attached ropes allow visitors to transform the sculptures by braiding and rearranging them. The work is constantly changing, and whatever children make of it becomes part of the artwork.

The installation also responds to the changing abilities of children as they grow. Children can sit, move around the structures, braid the ropes or simply play.

Listening to the Park

Sound takes centre stage in Telephone by Moza Almazrouei & Meera Almazrooei, an installation inspired by the familiar childhood tin-can telephone. Rather than simply recreating the nostalgic toy, the work explores the existing soundscape of Umm Al Emarat Park and encourages visitors to listen in unfamiliar ways.

Different channels offer different experiences. The shortest pipes allow for direct, end-to-end communication, while another introduces a delay, so that a child's voice is heard a few seconds after speaking. Other pipes, referred to as the sky and soil channels, invite visitors to consider sounds associated with the environment above and below them. Their audio begins with real recordings before moving into more imaginative territory.

At its heart, Telephone asks what listening can reveal and how paying attention to sound can change the way we experience a familiar place.

Meeting the World of Pollinators

One of the Biennale's most educational installations is Pollinators Play Museum, part of the ongoing project The Agriculture School. Through installations, food and landscape.

The installation by Moza Almatrooshi aims to break down the distance between people and pollinators, particularly bees. While many people associate bees with the fear of being stung, the project introduces visitors to the different types of bees found in the UAE and the important role they play in the environment.

“No bees were harmed in the process,” Almatrooshi said.

A palm-frond roof shelters blue, green and pink hexagons where children can crawl and imagine life as bees. The installation also features traditional beehives, nesting practices and child-friendly displays exploring the world of UAE pollinators.

While the installation took almost a year to develop, building trust and relationships with local beekeepers took several years.

“Everything here is either recyclable or can return back to the earth, or can return back to the beekeeper, can return back to the park,” she added, emphasising the point that she didn’t want to generate waste.

Weaving Stories from Nature

For Palestinian artist, researcher and writer Sara Afana, textiles offer a way to explore imagination, symbolism and storytelling. Her artwork includes The Gracious Sun, accompanied by two related works, The Patient Land and The Enchanting Sea.

Together, the three pieces personify elements of nature through abstract forms and colourful woven textures. Sara wanted to create works that would reconnect young visitors with a sense of open-ended curiosity.

Interactive weaving nets along the edges allow children to add their own contributions, making the installations collaborative and continually evolving.

Weaving was a relatively a new medium for Sara. With a background in writing and creative storytelling, she began working on a loom only last year. For her the newfound hobby gives her a different way of thinking: rather than planning every detail in advance, she began allowing colour, texture and the movement of her hands to guide the work.

Through this work, she invites children to question, explore and embrace things that do not necessarily have clear answers. She says she will continue to work in the park throughout the biennale and visitors can watch her do it.

International works at the park

Lastly, we see the art of Eko, originally presented at the Children’s Biennial in Singapore in 2019, reimagines East Java community lanterns as an outdoor installation.

The piece evokes peace, equality, kindness, love, and care. Visitors can enter and interact with it; collaborative interactions activate different colours and lighting. Its lights and sound are most immersive at night.

Ultimately, the Children's Biennale, a part of Abu Dhabi festival, is an invitation to experience Umm Al Emarat Park with fresh eyes. It encourages children to notice what is hidden, listen to what is usually ignored, imagine what does not yet exist and leave something of themselves behind.