The Emirati artist Mohammed Kazem to show at the Venice Biennale

In the rear area of the gallery, portioned off by a temporary wall, is a new work called Nurses. It is a pattern of coloured canvas squares, installed at random to form a larger square. He came up with the idea in Philadelphia when, on early morning walks, he used to see nurses dressed in a variety of bright colours.

“It is abstract but it is about the environment I was in and it is about the rhythm of life,” he says.

Kazem’s work is displayed in Gallery IVDE with a Belgian artist, Fred Eerdekens, who makes intricate wire sculptures that, when light is cast on them, reveal a reflection or shadow of text. The playful phrases lead the viewer around the gallery and give a poetry to the various mediums within. “Neither myself or Fred have a systematic way of displaying our work, so it works well together,” says Kazem.

• Poetics and Meanings will show at Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde in Alserkal Avenue until June 8

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The Emirati artist Mohammed Kazem to show at the Venice Biennale

Considered to be a pioneer of Emirati contemporary art, Mohammed Kazem is one of the most watched talents of the country. We meet him ahead of his forthcoming Venice show.