|

  • In this mixed-media work, Mehrdad Fallah presents a contemporary visual narrative of the UAE’s national identity through an eloquent interplay of color, texture, composition, and symbolic form. The presence of gold—applied with genuine gold leaf—emerges like a sacred radiance against the textured background, a luminosity that unmistakably conveys notions of grandeur, prosperity, and flourishing. It reflects today’s UAE as a young yet powerful and internationally recognized nation.

  • Roshanak Sattari’s painting Awakened Time positions itself, both conceptually and structurally, in a dialogue between Modernism and Postmodernism—where the city is no longer a purely physical landscape but a geography of memory and collective consciousness. The symbolism of the clock and the watchful eyes continues the historical tradition of using emblems of power, time, and surveillance. Meanwhile, the modern architecture and nocturnal execution align the work with contemporary urban painting, while the use of artificial light and atmospheric reflections connects it to the light-based art of the past century.

  • The fusion of the Abu Dhabi mosque (tradition) with the towers (modernity) re-creates a visual discourse of Emirati identity—an identity rising from the earth and reaching toward the sky. Beita Vakili’s painting, housed in the Raha Gallery Middle East Collection, illustrates that today’s UAE is the result of the coexistence of tradition and technology, faith and development, Islamic architecture and global innovation—a nation looking toward the future while never forgetting its roots. Beyond its artistic function and chromatic cohesion, the use of the UAE flag’s colors itself operates as a statement of national identity.

  • On the occasion of the 88th birthday of Master Ali Akbar Sadeghi, we revisit one of his magnificent triptychs, preserved today in the Raha Gallery Middle East Collection. This dazzling three-panel painting is not merely a banquet scene; it is a distilled vision of Sadeghi’s reflections on humanity, history, and social rituals. In Sadeghi’s world, celebration is always intertwined with a profound question: Is this a feast of being—or a feast of pretending? It is this very duality that elevates the work from a simple festive gathering to a visual manifesto on human nature and social performance.

  • One of the most significant achievements of Baran Auction has been the revitalization of the market for Islamic arts and calligraphy alongside a curated selection of modern and contemporary works—a combination that both preserves artistic roots and offers a perspective on emerging currents. This dual approach has brought Iranian and international audiences to a shared point of engagement and has elevated both the cultural and economic value of the artworks

  • Mehdi Sahabi (1943–2009) was, from the vantage point of art—and through his paintings, sculptures, and photographs—a social actor, always alert and inquisitive toward the realities of his time. His artistic narrative took shape within society and among the people.

  • The two remarkable calligraphic paintings by Sadegh Tabrizi (1939–2017) currently on view at the 17th edition of Abu Dhabi Art, presented by Sohrab Gallery, are emblematic works from a period in which Tabrizi liberated the script from the confines of text and transformed it into a visual symphony. In these canvases, color, line, texture, rhythm, and spirituality intertwine so seamlessly that the viewer encounters both an aesthetic experience and a contemplative one.

  • Mehrdad Fallah’s second exhibition in the United States opened in Virginia, featuring three of his major series.

  • A decade ago, Mahboubeh Kazemi launched Baran Auction, the first specialized auction dedicated to calligraphy and Islamic arts, featuring artists from Iraq, Turkey, and Iran, and achieving total sales of $871,000. Since 2016 (1395 SH), with the establishment of Baran Auction—the first auction in the Middle East exclusively focused on calligraphy and Islamic arts—Mahboubeh Kazemi has reminded the region of the enduring importance of its traditional and civilizational heritage. Four successful editions of the auction have been held so far.

  • Sohrab Gallery will present a collection of masterworks by Sadegh Tabrizi at Abu Dhabi Art 2025.

Advance Search