Created to highlight the artistic voices shaping the Emirates today, the Made in the UAE exhibition includes painting, mixed media, photography, and installation. Each artist has their own unique perspective, but common themes like identity, memory, materiality, and human connection tie everything together, giving a fascinating look at a region engaging creatively with itself and the wider world.
The finalists were selected by a panel of leading figures from the region’s art and cultural community, including Zina Khair, Patron and Co-Founder of the Khair Art Collection; Roxane Zand, Founder of Zand Fine Arts and former Sotheby’s Deputy Chairman Middle East; Ali Mohammadioun, Collector-Curator and Founder and Architect of E Plus A Atelier; and Jean-David Malat, art dealer and Founder of JD Malat Gallery. Following the review process, the panel expanded the original selection to include seven artists, recognising the exceptional quality and breadth of submissions received.
Ahmed Emad is a multidisciplinary artist working across painting and mixed media. He creates expressive figurative works that explore identity and the complexities of human experience. His practice is rooted in material experimentation, with works held in the collection of the Barjeel Art Foundation.
Anila Ashraf’s layered mixed media compositions draw on personal narratives to examine memory, femininity and emotional resilience. Combining symbolism, texture and abstraction, her introspective works reflect on human connection and inner landscapes.
Emirati artist and designer Camelia Mohebi brings together painting, sound and metaphysical concepts in a practice informed by psychology, theology and the subconscious mind. Her immersive works seek to create experiences that blur the boundaries between visual art and healing.
Elizaveta Pugacheva explores identity, perception and emotional connection through painting and mixed media works. Layered textures and fragmented forms create intimate visual narratives that evoke memory and fleeting moments of human experience.
Working across painting, photography, stage design and costume design, Samo Shalaby creates symbolic works influenced by surrealism and theatricality. His cinematic compositions investigate themes of identity, culture and transformation through storytelling and visual drama.
Sasan Nasernia’s practice has evolved from calligraphy and typography into painting, printmaking and installation. Drawing on Persian and Arabic calligraphic traditions, his abstract works explore the delicate balance between order and chaos through layered letterforms and gestural mark-making.
Photographer and multidisciplinary artist Yousif Albadi examines architecture, memory and human connection through photography, mixed media and installation. Incorporating threads, archival prints and found objects, his works reveal the emotional resonance and quiet poetry of overlooked spaces.
“Made in the UAE was created as a way to engage more directly with the artistic energy emerging from across the Emirates,” said Jean-David Malat, Founder of JD Malat Gallery. “The level of submissions we received was incredibly strong and demonstrated the depth of talent currently shaping the UAE’s cultural landscape. What stood out was not only the quality of the work, but the diversity of perspectives and experiences represented. These artists reflect the international and layered identity that makes Dubai such a compelling creative city today.”
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Hayley is passionate about everything 90s, from art and fashion to music. Her love for glossy, artful coffee table books started early during her days in book publishing and has only grown since. She collects luxury magazines from around the world, enjoys exploring creative workshops around the city, and always chases dinners with a view, preferably by the beach.
