Highlights from Palestinian artist Ruba Salameh’s exhibition at Dubai’s Zawyeh Gallery

Ruba Salameh’s ‘Tensegrit’ is running until Dec. 31. (Supplied)
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Updated 24 December 2020
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Highlights from Palestinian artist Ruba Salameh’s exhibition at Dubai’s Zawyeh Gallery

‘Tensegrity’

At first glance, the young Palestinian artist Ruba Salameh’s first solo exhibition looks simply like an accomplished collection of abstract works. But look closer and you will see that Salameh has incorporated a peculiar ingredient: hordes of ants crawling around on her canvases.

‘Urbahn Blue’

The ants gathering around Salemeh’s geometric shapes, or huddling in corners, or scattered randomly, bring to mind, according to the gallery’s statement, “the notion of resilience of an indigenous population in a situation where their own living space diminishes continuously as a result of … colonial powers.”

‘Tangram’

“Slowly and discretely,” the gallery’s statement continues, “the indigenous population’s motions transform into a form of disruption in a challenge to the supremacy of the dominant power.” As the name suggests, Salameh’s show explores tension and integrity.

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Highlights from Saher Nassar’s ‘Chronicles from the Storm’ exhibition in Dubai

Updated 27 February 2026
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Highlights from Saher Nassar’s ‘Chronicles from the Storm’ exhibition in Dubai

DUBAI: Here are three highlights from Saher Nassar’s ‘Chronicles from the Storm,’ which runs until March 18 at Zawyeh Gallery in Dubai.

‘Chronicles No. 1’

In his latest solo exhibition, the Palestinian artist “reimagines events that push past emotional capacity toward moral exhaustion, questioning the ethical certainty of the human spirit when faced with immense suffering,” according to the show catalogue, with works that “contemplate the devaluation of hope as a fundamental factor of human survival, sometimes revealed as currency for escape, sometimes seen in people resorting to their primal instincts to endure.”

‘Chronicles No. 8’

“Drawing from both personal and collective experiences, the exhibition unfolds as a layered reflection on how repeated trauma reshapes perception, belief, and the instinct to survive,” a press release for the show states. “Nasser translates lived realities into visual studies that move beyond immediate reaction. Rather than seeking resolution or catharsis, the works dwell in a state of moral exhaustion.”

‘Chronicles No. 3’

In “Chronicles from the Storm,” the UAE-based multidisciplinary artist is not attempting to offer answers, the press release suggests; rather, he is “bearing witness” and “inviting viewers to sit with unresolved questions and the uneasy persistence of the human spirit in the aftermath of the storm.” The works on show “carry a restrained intensity, resisting spectacle in favor of contemplation,” the release continues.