Abu Dhabi Art: Booth S12

Richard Saltoun Gallery presents a group exhibition that spans generations and geographies, bringing together artists from the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia. Through distinct visual languages rooted in cultural specificity and lived experience, the exhibition will explore themes of memory, identity, and diaspora. Highlights include works by Samira ABBASSY (b 1965), BAYA (1931-1998), Fathi HASSAN (b. 1957), Reena Saini KALLAT (b. 1973), and Juliana SERAPHIM (1934-2005). 

 

Samira Abbassy is an Iranian-born, New York-based artist whose figurative oil and gesso paintings blend European and Persian artistic traditions to explore the human figure, animals, and scenes of war. Influenced by Jungian psychoanalysis and her matriarchal lineage, her work examines the intersection of the physical and metaphysical self, connecting individual memory with collective history. Abbassy's work is found in several major collections, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the British Museum, the British Government Art Collection, and the Los Angeles County Museum, amongst others. 

 

Baya, born Fatima Haddad, was an Algerian artist famed for her vivid paintings and ceramics. These works draw on childhood memories and local traditions to celebrate womanhood, reimagining North African identity beyond colonial and gendered stereotypes. Her work is held in collections worldwide including the Picasso Museum, Antibes; the Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah; and the National Museum of Fine Arts, Algiers. A vast exhibtion of her work is also currently on view at the Fondation Maeght in Saint Paul de Vence (2025-26). 

 

Fathi Hassan is an Egyptian-born Nubian artist whose work blends abstract caligraphy with vibrant colours to create a symbolic visual language that reflects on the complexities of history and heritage. His work can be found in several public collections, including the V&A, the British Museum, and the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art. 

 

Reena Saini Kallat is a Mumbai-based artist whose practice encompasses drawing, sculpture, photography, and video. Her work critically examines political and social borders, exploring the profound disruptions they can inflict on landscapes, communities, and ecosystems. Recent solo exhibitions include Kunstmuseum Thun, Switzerland (2023); Compton Verney, UK (2022); Firstsite, UK (2022); Norrtalje Konsthall, Sweden (2021); The National Museum of Asian Arts - Guimet, Paris (2020); and the Manchester Museum (2017). 

 

Juliana Seraphim was a pioneer of the Middle Eastern art scene from the 1960s - 1990s. Known for her unique Surrealist style and dreamlike iconography, she engaged deeply with gender struggle, female sexual agency, nature and spirituality. Seraphim was recently included in two landmark exhibitions, 'Arab presence: Modern Art and Decolonisation, Paris 1908-1988' at the Museé d'Art Moderne, Paris (2024) and 'Beirut and The Golden Sixties', Biennale de Lyon (2022). 

 

Additional works will be on view by Simryn GILL (b. 1959), Huda LUTFI (b. 1948), Rabab NEMR (1939-2025), and Penny SIOPIS (b. 1953). 

 

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Manarat Al Saadiyat

Cultural District, Abu Dhabi

   

DATES & TIMES

Wednesday 19th November – Sunday 23rd November | 2–9 PM

 

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