Talal Al Najjar is an artist from the Emirates, based between Los Angeles and Dubai.
Driven by researching, archiving, and distorting, his interdisciplinary practice recontextualizes material culture, artifacts, and imagery, tinged with irony. Defamiliarization and the uncanny prompt new anthropological and material questions in his work, utilizing an absurdist lens. He produces sculpture, video, sound, CGI animation, painting, and installation, in addition to writing and curation. Primary concerns include ideas around simulation, postproduction, poor images, counter-futurisms, and the contention of postmodern conditions. He received his MFA from ArtCenter College of Design (2023), and his BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (2021). He has exhibited work in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
Recent exhibitions include: Art Dubai, Dubai (2024); The Space, ICD Brookfield Place, Dubai (2024, 2023); NYUAD, Abu Dhabi (2023); The Box Gallery, Los Angeles (2023); After the End, NADA, Online (2023); ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena (2023, 2022, 2021); Yiwei Gallery, Los Angeles (2022); Bayt AlMamzar, Dubai (2022); Al Fahidi, Dubai (2022); 3FTD, Los Angeles (2021); Sotheby’s, Dubai (2021); Alserkal Avenue, Dubai (2020); Jameel Arts Center, Dubai (2020), among others. He is a recipient of the ICD Brookfield Place Arts Residency (2023) and Dirwaza Creative Access Grant (2022).
EDUCATION
2023, Master of Fine Arts, ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena, CA, USA
2021, Bachelor of Fine Arts, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
SOLO & TWO-PERSON EXHIBITIONS
2025, Solo Exhibition, Tabari Artspace, Dubai, UAE (forthcoming)
Broken Barrels (with Moza Almazrouei), curated by Salem AlSuwaidi, SWALIF x ATHR, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
2024, Petro-Ghareebo: NAUSEA, Tabari Artspace x Art Dubai, Dubai, UAE
2023, Symbiotic: Hyperreal (with Ziad Al Najjar), curated by Tala Nassar, NYU Abu Dhabi Project Space, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Petro-Ghareebo: NAUSEA, Graduate Thesis Exhibition, Cave Gallery, ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena, CA, USA
2022, Petro-Ghareebo, Cave Gallery, ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena, CA, USA L1MB-B0, Cave Gallery, ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena, CA, USA L1MB_B0, B13 Gallery, ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena, CA, USA, Virtual Ritual, Raymond Gallery, ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena, CA, USA, CrasH! (with Brennan Stalford), Mike Kelley Foundation Graduate Art Gallery, Pasadena, CA, USA
2021, Tittering, B13 Gallery, Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, CA, USA, Cetacea, Appendix Projects, Online
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2025, The Boys Are Alright, Bayt AlMamzar, Dubai, UAE (forthcoming)*
2025, Maknana: An Archaeology of New Media Arts in the Arab World, Diriyah Art Futures, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
2025, Înca:Presenting the Salam Art Collection, Miraz ArtSpace, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq
2025, Tabari Artspace Group Show, Tabari Artspace x Art Dubai, Dubai, UAE (forthcoming)
2024, Trio Exhibition, Tabari Artspace x Abu Dhabi Art, Abu Dhabi, UAE (forthcoming)
2024, CHIAROSCURO, curated by Michele Lamy, ICD Brookfield Place, Dubai, UAE
2023, Postmordial Soup, ICD Brookfield Place, Dubai; The Deluge, Curated by Catherine Taft, The Box, Los Angeles, CA, USA Swamped, Book Launch, Hauser & Wirth, Los Angeles, CA, USA; AftertheEnd, Curated by Catherine Taft, New Art Dealers Alliance, Online
2022, Liquify, Yiwei Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Ybna Al3eid (Co-curator, with Salem AlSuwaidi), Bayt AlMamzar, Dubai, UAE
Fractured Existence, Al Fahidi, Dubai, UAE,
Cohort Show, Mike Kelley Foundation Graduate Art Gallery, Pasadena, CA, USA
2021, MFA Group Show, The Goodan Family Graduate Art Gallery, Pasadena, CA, USA
13 PAINTERS, 3FTD Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Made in the Emirates: Connected, Collected, Engage 101, Sotheby’s, Dubai, UAE
Anthropopeia, Appendix Projects, Online
Undergraduate Thesis Exhibition, School of the Art Institute of Chicago Galleries, Chicago, IL, USA
2020, Playing Spaces, Engage 101, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, UAE; ReassigningValues, Jameel Arts Centre / Dubai, UAE
FAIRS
2019, Chicago Art Book Fair, Chicago, IL, USA
2016, Sikka Art Fair , Al Fahidi, Dubai, UAE
AWARDS, GRANTS & RESIDENCIES
2025, Dubai Culture Public Art Program
2024, Italy & United Arab Emirates:Digital Arts As A Vehicle For Accessibility To Cultural Heritage, Youth Exchange Residency, Rome, Italy
2023, ICD Brookfield Place Arts Residency, Dubai, UAE
2022, Recipient of The Dirwaza Microfund for Creative Access grant, for Ybna Al3eid
2021-2023, Graduate Art Scholarship, ArtCenter College of Design
2016-2021, Good Academic Standing, School of the Art Institute of Chicago
2016-2021, Full scholarship, Undergraduate, from the Ministry of Higher Education, UAE
2016-2021, Creative Honours Scholarship, Undergraduate, from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
The Dubai Collection, Dubai, UAE
The Mestelan Collection, Dubai, UAE
Salam Art Collection, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq
MamarLab, Abu Dhabi, UAE
HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nayhan Collection, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Works held in private collections in the UAE and USA
PUBLIC COMMISSIONS
2025, Commissioned by MamarLab to write and publish an essay reflecting on the regional arteco-systems, Abu Dhabi
2024, Commissioned by Salem AlSuwaidi for poster design for his Public Art Manifesto, for
his 421 Homebound Residency exhibition entitled NetworkCulture, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2020, commissioned by Daniel H. Rey, Jameel Arts Centre, for Excrescence, a 4 by 8 ft. sculpture, video, and sound installation, for the Youth Takeover: Reassigning Values exhibition, Dubai, UAE
2018, Commissioned to paint O-14 tower’s outdoor sculpture, with Ziad Al Najjar, Dubai, UAE
PUBLICATIONS
2023, Ybna Al3eid (Co-editor and writer, with Salem AlSuwaidi), Publication, SWALIF Publishing House, June
2023, Logged In, Artist book, Self-published & ArtCenter Graduate Art Press, April
2023, Swamped, Group artist book, ArtCenter Graduate Art Press, April
SELECTED PRESS & BIBLIOGRAPHY
2025 The Dubai Collection, “On Creating - Talal Al Najjar”, January 2025
2024 The National, “‘The DNA of the city': What to expect at Art Dubai 2025”, December 2024
Global Art Daily, “‘My Existence, That Absurd Thing’ Opens at MamarLab in MiZa, Abu Dhabi”, November 2024
2024, "Dubai’s 3 Most Exciting Young Artists," Level Shoes, October
2024, "Michèle Lamy explores light and darkness in Dubai," Wallpaper Magazine, March
2024, "Art Dubai Highlights the City’s Growing Appeal with Asian Collectors," Artsy, March
2024, "Emirati artist strives to provoke questions when showcasing his work," The National, February
2024, "ART DUBAI DIGITAL 2024: BEHIND THE SCENES WITH CURATORS AURONDA SCALERA AND ALFREDO CRAMEROTTI," Art Dubai, February
2024, "Channeling the Uncanny in Counter-Futurisms," The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, February
2023, "Stirring the Pot," Canvas Magazine, November-December (Print)
2023, "Collecteurs Selects: Exhibitions to See in Dubai," Collecteurs, November
2023, "AI is changing art creation in the Middle East," Fast Company Middle East, October
2023, "Postmordial Soup Exhibition: A fusion of art, culture, and human experience," Gulf News, October
2023, "Postmordial Soup Brings Together Ziad Al Najjar, Talal Al Najjar and Miramar Al Nayyar," Global Art Daily, October
2023, "THE VOICE | Talal Al Najjar," Tabari Artspace, October
2023, "Creative Talks: Discussion with the Artists Behind ‘Postmordial Soup’," Khamsa, October
2023, "Postmordial Soup exhibition opens at ICD Brookfield Place," Caravel Magazine, October
2023, "ICD Brookfield Place Present a Group Exhibition Featuring Talal Al Najjar, Ziad Al Najjar, and Miramar Al Nayyar," Arte & Lusso, October
2023, "Postmordial Soup: Talal Al Najjar and Ziad Al Najjar, and Miramar Al Nayyar," Arte & Lusso, September
2023, TimeOut, “NYUAbu DhabiArt Galleryunveils newshowcase withEmiratiartists”, June 2023
YallaAbuDhabi, “Explore the dualities of tradition and modernity at this NYUAD exhibition”, June 2023
2023, EmiratesNewsAgency, “Emirati artists Talal and Ziad Al Najjar illuminate hyperreality in ‘Symbiotic’ exhibition at NYUAD”, May 2023
Emirates24/7, “Emirati Artists Showcase Balance Between Heritage and Modernity in The Project Space’s Final Exhibition for the Season”, May 2023
AlKhaleej, “Symbiotic: Hyperreal”, an exhibition by two Emirati brothers”, May 2023 Hyperallergic, “An Eclectic Bunch at ArtCenter’s Open Studios”, April 2023
2022, Artforum, Critic’s Pick: Dubai, “Ybna Al3eid”, October 2022
The Culturist, “New season of exhibitions in Dubai, Sharjah, and Abu Dhabi”, September 2022,
Gulf News, “Take a tour of Dubai’s Bayt Al Mamzar”, September 2022
Dubai Culture, “Immersive VR & Metaverse journeys and inspiring GCC artworks in Sikka 2022”, March 2022
2021, Appendix Projects, Anthropopeia: Talal Al Najjar, March 2021
The Art Newspaper, “What to do when the tourists leave town? How the UAE art scene has innovated during the pandemic”, February 2021
VICE Arabia, “101: A New Platform to Support Emerging Artists in the UAE”, January 2021
2020, Art Curator Grid, “WAW - we are wondering”, December 2020
Global Art Daily, “101 Strikes Again with Second Sale at Alserkal Avenue”, November 2020
The National, “101 presents new ways of buying and experiencing art: flashlight-viewings and late-night workshops”, November 2020
101, Playing Spaces: Talal Al Najjar, November 2020
Global Art Daily, “GAD Talk Series #3: When the Youth Takes Over: Reflecting on the Jameel Arts Centre 2020 Youth Takeover”, November 2020
VICE Arabia, “Youth Curating Youth: Encountering the UAE’s New Artists at the Jameel Youth Takeover”, November 2020
Verticles, The Youth Takeover: Talal Al Najjar, November 2020
ABC, “El dialogo cultural de Daniel H. Rey”, November 2020
Jameel Arts Centre, “The Youth Takeover 2020”, October 2020
The National, “Nine-01: Young Emirati artists transform mall space into art studio”, August 2020
Michael Rakowitz: “The Invisible Enemy Should Not Exist”, 2020
2016, Arabian Business, “8 of the Best Artworks at Sikka”, March 2016
TALKS & LECTURES
2025, Merin Pavilion Symposium‘Realms in Flux’atSIKKA2025, Co-speaker with Rahel Aima of Panel Discussion titled “Futurity & Anxiety: (Re-evaluating) Contemporary Art in the Gulf”, Hosted by Mabnai & SWALIF / Dubai, UAE
IstitutoMarangoni, Visiting artist & lecturer / Dubai, UAE
2024, MamarLab, Moderator of Panel Discussion titled “Nausea: Artists On Our Era’s Anxieties” / Abu Dhabi, UAE CultureSummitAbuDhabi, Speaker with the ArabGulfStatesInstituteinWashington, titled “Channeling the Uncanny in Counter-Futurisms” with Ayman Zedani, Ahaad Alamoudi, and Kristin Smith Diwan / Abu Dhabi, UAE / March 2024
2023, ICD Brookfield Place, Panelist & speaker, “Navigating the Art World: There’s No Such Thing” panel discussion / Hosted in collaboration with Tabari Artspace / Moderated by Gaith Abdulla and Maliha Al Tabari / Dubai, UAE
2022, ArtCenterCollegeofDesign, Introduction to public lecture: “Kahlil Robert Irving in conversation with Jan Tumlir”, Fall ‘22 / Pasadena, CA, USA
YbnaAl3eid, Co-hosted “Ybna ElNaqd”,a critique session for the YbnaAl3eidexhibition, in collaboration with Salem AlSuwaidi & SWALIF Collective / Bayt AlMamzar / Dubai, UAE
2020, ZayedUniversity, Visiting artist & lecturer (online) / Dubai, UAE
ZayedUniversity, Visiting artist & lecturer (online) / Abu Dhabi, UAE
GlobalArtDaily, Guest speaker, “Reflecting on the Jameel Arts Centre 2020 Youth Takeover” / Online (Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Tokyo)
SPECIAL PROJECTS
2025, Dubai Collection Experiential Press Dinner, Art Dubai x Dubai Collection, Dubai, UAE
Experiential Artist Suhoorat Bayt Al Mamzar, Dubai Collection, programming, collaboration with Ayesha Erkin, Dubai, UAE
2022, Art Center College of Design, Teacher Assistant for core faculty Shahryar Nashat, “A class on repetition, a class on repetition,” Fall ‘22, Pasadena, CA, USA
2020, Engage 101, Workshop host, “Introduction to Sculpture”, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, UAE
Nine-01, Co-founder of pop-up art studio and exhibition space, Dubai, UAE
Michael Rakowitz Studio, Assistant sculptor, intern for The Invisible Enemy Should Not Exist, series, Chicago, IL, USA
2015, Dubai Walls & Ron English, Assistant painter for Ron English, large commission mural for City Walk, Initiated by Dubai Walls& Meraas Holdings. Dubai, UAE