Weekly UAE museum and gallery guide, from post-impressionism to Emirati abstraction

Also, a play at NYUAD touches on the absurdities of a workplace

Post Impressionism: Beyond Appearances is running until February at Louvre Abu Dhabi. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Emirati abstraction, European post-impressionism, a solo exhibition by a celebrated Bahraini artist and a play that makes light of the bureaucratic absurdities of the workplace. There’s a lot going on in the UAE cultural scene this weekend – and we’re spoilt for choice.

Hamour Doesn’t Leave the Cubicle: Friday and Saturday at The Arts Centre at NYU Abu Dhabi

Hamour Doesn’t Leave the Cubicle is a play directed by NYU Abu Dhabi alumnus Reem Almenhali and written by Ahmed Almadloum. It is performed in Arabic with English subtitles. It touches on the absurdities of a workplace and resonates on a universal level, while being grounded in Emirati culture.

According to NYUAD, the play is set in “a world where the mundane meets the extraordinary, revealing different levels of bureaucracy that the characters navigate in every act, from writing an email to holding a funeral for a pen".

Friday and Saturday, from 7.30pm; The Black Box at The Arts Centre, NYUAD

Interwoven: Until November 10 at Mestaria Gallery

Untitled II by Areej Rajab. Photo: Mestaria Gallery

Bahraini artist Areej Rajab explores the human relationship with nature in her solo show at Alserkal Avenue’s Mestaria Gallery. The works on display cover a range of styles, from figurative pieces to those that lean towards the abstract. However, the commonality between the pieces is their bold colours and lively forms. Certain designs repeat as motifs, evoking the patterns found in nature and human behaviour alike.

Daily, 10am-7pm; until November 10; Mestaria Gallery, Dubai

Post-Impressionism: Beyond Appearances: Until February 9 at Louvre Abu Dhabi

Vincent van Gogh's The Siesta on display at Louvre Abu Dhabi. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Post-Impressionism: Beyond Appearances brings together a collection of masterpieces that offers a sharp insight into one of history's most affecting artistic eras. The 99 pieces on show include three paintings by Dutch master Vincent van Gogh, as well as works by Paul Gaugin, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Paul Cezanne.

The exhibition also aims to show how the legacy of the post-impressionists extended to the Middle East. It includes two works by the French-Egyptian artist Georges Hanna Sabbagh, who studied figures from the post-impressionist group Les Nabis, including Paul Serusier and Felix Vallotton.

Tuesday to Sunday, 10am-6.30pm; until February 9; Louvre Abu Dhabi

Hour Eternal: 20 Years of Emirati Abstraction: Until February 16 at Bassam Freiha Art Foundation, Abu Dhabi

Untitled by Najat Makki. Photo: Bassam Freiha Art Foundation

Abdul Qader Al Rais, Najat Makki, and Hassan Sharif are among the 14 pioneering Emirati artists who are being featured in Hour Eternal. The exhibition is dedicated to exploring the development of abstract art in the UAE, showing how the medium has been used to examine the country’s cultural transformation, alongside existential themes of identity and memory.

The exhibition is one of four at Bassam Freiha Art Foundation. Vision of the Orient takes cues from the foundation’s inaugural exhibition by displaying 19th-century orientalist works. US artist Anthony James is presenting two installations at the foundation’s Sculpture Garden.

Finally, Lebanese artist Tarek Elkassouf is presenting more than two dozen sculptures crafted from limestone and gold in Boundaries. They explore the tensions between societal norms and liberation. Lines from Letters, an accompanying display, shows concept drawings by Elkassouf, offering insight into his process.

Daily, 10am-8pm; until February 16; Bassam Freiha Art Foundation, Abu Dhabi