UAE Autumn Art Season: 21 Exhibitions Across Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah
A curated look at the UAE's vibrant autumn art season featuring diverse regional and international talent.
1UAE Autumn Art Season
The UAE art scene is currently hosting a diverse range of exhibitions across Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah. These shows feature works spanning painting, photography, sculpture, and immersive installations. Artists are exploring complex themes including migration, cultural identity, environmental change, and the evolving relationship between people and their immediate physical surroundings.
2Rana Begum at Third Line
Rana Begum presents her fifth solo exhibition, Taking Form, at The Third Line in Dubai until November 10. The collection features large wool tapestries suspended from the ceiling alongside works on paper and wooden panels. These pieces continue her long-standing exploration of light, geometry, and material, introducing a new sense of softness.
3Emirati Heritage and Identity
Leila Heller Gallery hosts two exhibitions by Azza Al Qubaisi and Karima Al Shomely until November 10. Al Qubaisi surveys multidisciplinary works connecting coastal environments to identity, while Al Shomely examines traditional Emirati clothing and textiles. Both artists utilize their respective mediums to explore how objects carry memories of social and cultural change.
4Maggie Otieno's Reclaimed Vessels
Kenyan artist Maggie Otieno showcases her first solo exhibition at Efie Gallery, running until November 13. She transforms reclaimed materials, including 150-year-old railway sleepers and wooden canoe fragments, into sculptural vessels. Her work shifts objects once associated with colonial infrastructure and movement into forms that prioritize stillness, memory, and the passage of time.
5Modernist Mahmoud Moussa
Maha Al Mansoori Art Gallery presents the first UAE solo exhibition for Egyptian modernist Mahmoud Moussa at Abu Dhabi’s MiZa district. Running November 11 to 15, the show features over 10 sculptures. Moussa, a pioneer of modern Egyptian sculpture, utilized granite, basalt, and terracotta to create simplified forms that preserve collective cultural memory.
6Women Modernists in Arab Art
History Otherwise at Concrete in Alserkal Avenue reconsiders the contributions of women artists to 20th-century Arab modernism. Running November 15 to 22, the exhibition draws from the Barjeel Art Foundation collection. It features archival posters and works by artists like Inji Efflatoun and Mona Saudi, challenging conventional narratives by highlighting overlooked female creative voices.
7Pieter Vermeersch at Perrotin
Belgian artist Pieter Vermeersch presents his first UAE solo exhibition at Perrotin Dubai until November 22. The show includes 11 works exploring the intersection of colour, material, and perception. By manipulating photographic images into abstract compositions, Vermeersch examines the boundaries between painted surfaces and physical objects, altering the viewer's experience of the space.
8Urban Rhythms by Al Hashemi
Eman Al Hashemi examines the changing rhythms of UAE urban life in The Horizon We Inherit at Iris Projects. Running until November 26 in Abu Dhabi, the exhibition uses ceramics and printmaking to analyze how cities shape memory. She treats the built environment as an active force rather than a mere backdrop.
9Shamin Sharum's Provisional Sanctuaries
Malaysian artist Shamin Sharum explores overlooked prayer spaces in Dubai at Tashkeel until November 27. Through architectural models and drawings, he reconstructs makeshift musallas found in industrial areas. Trained as an architect, Sharum considers how these temporary structures acquire lasting emotional significance and provide a sense of belonging for migrant communities in cities.
10Vantage Point 13 Photography
Sharjah Art Foundation hosts Vantage Point 13, a photography exhibition running until November 29. Six commissioned artists were selected through an international open call to present original series. This platform has evolved since 2013 from a local initiative into an international exhibition, reflecting the foundation's expanded commitment to supporting new photographic work.
11Fellow Travellers at Tabari
Curated by Professor Omar Kholeif, Fellow Travellers at Tabari explores movement, kinship, and cultural exchange through six artists. Running until November 30, the exhibition draws on two decades of research. It features landmark pieces and rarely seen works, tracing artistic journeys across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas to highlight global creative connections.
12Ceramics and Emotional Expression
Bodies that Make, Bodies that Grieve at NYU Abu Dhabi Project Space features eight female artists from the Global South. Running until December 13, the exhibition uses ceramics to explore grief and memory. By focusing on the physical act of firing and building clay, the artists position the medium as a vessel for emotions.