XVA Gallery presents Tajammul, a group exhibition that brings together a diverse assembly of contemporary artists whose practices span geographies, generations, and mediums. Rooted in the Arabic term meaning “beauty” and “gathering,” Tajammul gathers works by sixteen artists in a rich visual dialogue. Curated by Carina Vicente, it will be open to the public until 11 September 2025.
The exhibition navigates a wide terrain of themes: identity and displacement, the metaphysics of form, memory and materiality, nature and its distortion, and the persistent question of what it means to be human in a rapidly shifting world. Whether working in painting, photography, or mixed media, the participating artists open up plural pathways of meaning while underscoring the exhibition’s central ethos: art as a site of convergence.
The featured creatives include British-Kuwaiti painter Basil Alkazzi and pioneering Lebanese artist Moussa Tiba (1939-2015). Alkazzi is known for his ethereal, luminous abstractions that often explore themes of transformation and transcendence through nature-inspired forms. Tiba is celebrated for his bold compositions and philosophical abstraction, reflecting decades of engagement with Arab modernism.
UAE-based multidisciplinary artist Charlotte de Bekker works across photography and installation and often explores absence, time, and the shifting traces of human presence. Japanese-American artist and educator Colleen Quigley merges drawing, performance, and installation in works that examine perception, memory, and the spatial politics of the body.
Meanwhile, Oman-based Indian artist Debjani Bhardwaj creates intricate paper-cut works and mixed-media installations that draw from mythology, folklore, and female narratives. Brazilian artist Elizabeth Dorazio employs transparent layers, organic forms, and installation to explore ecological systems, spirituality, and the boundaries between body and environment.
Also on display are works by UAE-based artist David Howarth and two Iranian creatives (Behdad Lahooti and Morteza Zahedi). Howarth delves into urban identity through painting and digital media; his visually layered compositions often incorporate textual and architectural elements. Lahooti creates richly textured paintings and sculptural assemblages which examine psychological landscapes and contemporary mythology. Zahedi blends playful aesthetics with conceptual depth, producing art pieces that challenge traditional hierarchies of form and content.
Visitors can also admire works by Saudi artist Hussein Al-Mohasen, Iranian conceptual artist CC (Alireza Asbahi), Pakistani artist Imran Channa, Moroccan artist Oussama Garti, Iranian-American artist Mahmoud Hamadani, South African artist Richard Ketley, and Tor Seidel, an UAE-based German photographer and filmmaker.
To get more information about Tajammul, please visit the official web page of the exhibition.
In addition, you might be interested in viewing Samur by Zheng Bo and No Trespassing at Ishara Art Foundation.
