Khalid Al Banna’s sculptures are the first, or perhaps the biggest, works visitors pass at Art Dubai, which is running at Madinat Jumeirah until Sunday.
Two monumental geometric structures rise across the gallery halls and outdoor walkways at the venue. Presented by House of Arts and associated with Aisha Alabbar Gallery, The Path's stark forms fall somewhere between a satellite structure and an architectural signal.
Constructed as geometric installations balancing mass, void and light, the dual pieces, one within the exhibition space and the other in the courtyard facing the site’s snaking artificial river, stand proudly, a pointed message of the fair’s resilience and the role of Emirati artists in telling that story.
The original event, meant to take place in April, was postponed owing to the Iran war, resulting in a special edition of Art Dubai 2026.
“All the major international galleries are present in Dubai. On the contrary, it has become one of the things they must be part of. They have to be present in a major event such as Art Dubai,” Al Banna tells The National.
“It has become important. It is now on the global map. As it grew, so did a generation of Emirati artists and the art scene. Its evolution partly reflects what happened here, from smaller spaces and galleries to large fairs where artists from the UAE can show their work.”
The fair marks a personal milestone for Safeya Sharif Al Awadhi.
After years of attending Art Dubai, she returns this year as an artist, showcasing a selection of solo works at Iris Projects alongside multidisciplinary artist Alyazia Al Nahyan.
“It holds a special place in my heart; it's a fair I’ve been going to since I was an undergrad,” Al Awadhi says. “So to come here and show my work, particularly in this one, makes it more meaningful to me. The contribution feels more important.”
Al Awadhi’s presentation feels like a timely addition. Through a series of wall-based sculptures and studies, she looks at how shifting sand dunes can speak about time, memory and renewal, with each movement of the landscape leaving a trace while also changing what came before.
Using satellite imagery to track environmental shifts, she creates sculptures that reflect the contours of the desert, turning an undulating surface that is always changing into fixed sculptural form.
The clearest example is Lines of Persistence, a large wall-based linear sculpture that resembles dune ridges or contour lines. Its raised form and shadows make the landscape appear as a record of movement, a freeze-frame of terrain shaped by wind, time and environmental change.
“I was thinking about grids, and about how Dubai is moving fast, while also paying homage to what Dubai’s landscape is: the desert,” she says.
“Looking at the landscape from above changes how you understand it,” she says. “Every time I’m in the desert, I’m engulfed by this environment. But when I looked at the satellite images, the experience was different. I felt like I was holding the dunes.”
Her process begins with drawing and repeated mark-making before the line becomes sculptural. Aluminium gives her a material that could hold shape while still bending.
“What’s nice about aluminium is that it does the same thing that the desert does to you. It shows you that you can bend but not break.”
Festooned above the main exhibition space are works from Hashel Al Lamki’s Maat, originally commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation for Sharjah Biennial 16 and presented here by Tabari Artspace.
Made from hotel napkins, Japanese silk chiffon, natural pigments and oil pastels, the installation also uses reclaimed textiles, including hotel linens, burial cloths and bridal fabrics.
The materials carry the memory of places and rituals: hotels, weddings, service and care. In the context of Art Dubai’s revised edition and at a time when parts of the city’s hospitality sector are going through a leaner period of closures and refurbishments, these vibrant fabrics feel more like the promise of return.
Material memory also runs through the Ministry of Culture presentation When the Familiar Becomes Unfamiliar, where Emirati artists Karima Al Shomely and Rawdha Al Ketbi reimagine traditional textiles and everyday structures such as ladders as sculptural works, while Sara Ahli creates glassworks inspired by the body.
Darting through the exhibition is Juma Al Haj, a prominent Emirati artist and a regular presence on the UAE art scene. His abstract paintings are inspired by personal reflections and the written word.
With no work showing this year, he felt even more compelled to attend, out of support for the community and because the fair still plays an important role.
“Art Dubai, its philosophy, has become part of the DNA of the city. You can’t really remove it from the scene. The fact that it’s a smaller-scale exhibition this year just shows that we are resilient. We adapt. We do what needs to be done so that we can keep things moving and represent the community,” he says.
“So as artists and people, we need to show up and network. That’s how you keep the community thriving. Besides, you never know what ideas come from these conversations.”
Art Dubai runs at Madinat Jumeirah until Sunday
