GATE DXB / 28.10.2026
Azza Al Qubaisi: the UAE landscape in sculpture and jewellery
Published 28 October 2026. Visit the organiser’s website for visiting details. The exhibition mentioned in this story ends on 10 November 2026.
A piece of jewellery can be approached as a small sculpture, while a sculpture can change the way we notice a familiar landscape. These scales meet in the work of Emirati artist Azza Al Qubaisi. Her exhibition Between Land and Sea is at Leila Heller Gallery in Alserkal Avenue until 10 November 2026.
An artist working across materials
Al Qubaisi works with jewellery, sculpture and mixed materials. Nature, cultural heritage and identity are among the themes of her practice. Looking for recurring forms across objects of different sizes offers an accessible starting point for discovering her work. Official context: https://alserkal.online/event/between-land-and-sea
The gallery’s list of works includes Dune Series, Root, Abaya (Metaphor) and Land and Sea. Their titles suggest several starting points for a visit: dunes, roots, clothing and the meeting of land and water. Visitors can compare silhouettes and surfaces, or step closer and further away to see how their impressions change, without searching for one definitive interpretation.
Steel, gold and asphalt
Curated by Aysha Al Hemeiri, the exhibition brings together four bodies of work: Between the Lines, Treasure, Sustainability and Foundation. The gallery’s press release describes a practice that examines not only form but also how familiar materials acquire value.
Treasure places industrial steel alongside gold-plated surfaces. Sustainability, first developed in 2006, uses materials including asphalt, silver, gold and glass. Materials associated with roads, construction and resources become objects to look at closely.
For Al Qubaisi, this is a way to consider the UAE’s desert, coast and changing built environment. Born in Abu Dhabi, she studied jewellery at London Guildhall University before extending her practice from intimate objects to large-scale sculpture and public works.
Why visit now
The exhibition brings different aspects of the artist’s practice into one space. Start with the sculptures, then compare their scale with the jewellery. It is a manageable introduction for visitors who are curious about art but unsure where to begin.
This is an editorial profile based on the organisers’ information and a press release supplied by Leila Heller Gallery, not an interview with the artist.
- Until 10 November 2026.
- Leila Heller Gallery, I-87 / WH 87, Alserkal Avenue, Al Quoz 1, Dubai.
- Gallery hours: Monday–Friday 10 am–7 pm; Saturday–Sunday 11 am–7 pm.
Confirm visiting arrangements and the current programme before travelling: https://leilahellergallery.com/exhibitions/current/ . Official gallery hours/contact: https://leilahellergallery.com/about/