From the early days of the UAE’s contemporary art movement to the present day, these artists have shaped the country’s visual language through decades of sustained practice. Their work has not only stood the test of time but continues to influence new generations through its depth, originality, and cultural relevance. Today, with major exhibitions and presentations currently on view across the UAE, their practices feel as vital as ever. These three Emirati artists remain essential voices in understanding both the foundations and future of the region’s art scene.
Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim is one of the UAE’s pioneering contemporary artists, active since the 1980s and central to the country’s first avant-garde generation. His work is currently the focus of a major retrospective at the Cultural Foundation in Abu Dhabi, offering a timely reflection on a career shaped as much by persistence as by place.
Part of a formative scene that included Hassan Sharif, Abdullah Al Saadi, Hussein Sharif and Mohammed Kazem, Ibrahim’s early years were marked by public misunderstanding. Yet it was during this period that he began to define art as dialogue rather than decoration. Born in Khorfakkan, with the Gulf of Oman on one side and the Hajar Mountains on the other, his practice remains deeply rooted in the beauty of that landscape.
Across installations, drawings and objects, Ibrahim works with repetition, memory and material. His handmade forms resemble primitive tools or unearthed artefacts, while his works on paper echo ancient inscriptions, marking time through a personal, meditative visual language.
Widely known as Rukni, Ahmed Al Awadhi is a self-taught Emirati artist whose practice bridges tradition and pop art to celebrate UAE culture through bold, expressive imagery. Active since the early 1990s, Al Awadhi began exhibiting in 1992 after encouragement from friends who believed his work deserved a wider audience. His paintings draw on familiar symbols of Emirati life, from traditional architecture and dallah coffee pots to wildlife, creating a visual language that connects UAE youth to their heritage.
Born and raised in Sharjah, Al Awadhi’s memories of traditional houses and everyday rituals continue to shape his work, which aims to preserve cultural narratives while remaining accessible and contemporary. His upcoming participation as a special guest artist at THE ART FEST – International 2nd Edition, taking place from March 13–15, positions his work within a global dialogue. The exhibition marks another step in his ongoing mission to tell the story of the UAE to both local and international audiences.
Abdul Raheem Salem is a key figure in the UAE’s contemporary art movement, with a career spanning more than four decades. His work is currently on view in a new exhibition at the Arab Cultural Club in Sharjah, where more than 20 large-scale paintings unfold as a continuous visual and emotional journey. Unified through colour and form, the exhibition reflects Salem’s expressive approach, blending painterly experimentation with a deep intellectual and emotional rhythm.
Born in 1955, Salem is an Emirati painter, sculptor and educator based in Sharjah, known for merging Arab heritage with contemporary expression. His work often explores themes of women, light and shadow, and frequently references the folkloric figure Muhaira. A founding member of the Emirates Fine Arts Society in 1980, Salem is a member of the first generation of artists who shaped the UAE’s modern art landscape alongside figures such as Hassan Sharif and Abdul Qader Al Raes.
His career has included international milestones, including his 2015 participation in the Venice Biennale. This current exhibition reaffirms his enduring influence and commitment to artistic dialogue within the region.
