‘Self-portrait with a cat I don’t have’ is Bady Dalloul's first institutional solo exhibition in the United Arab Emirates.

Blending autobiographical anecdotes with stories of individuals he encounters, Dalloul features fragile heroes and ordinary people navigating systems larger than themselves. He repurposes everyday materials—including books, matchboxes, board games and magazines—to prompt dialogues across cultures and genres. He elevates everyday stories into epics, bridges high and low brow, and connects non-Western cultures, at times unexpectedly, outside of conventional Eurocentric boundaries.

Bady Dalloul’s meticulously handcrafted works brim with collages, writing and drawings that reimagine global politics and the fates of those caught in history’s web. Much of his art traces back to a childhood game of inventing countries—with borders, cultures and political histories—echoing historical events that deeply affected his family history and his home country, Syria. The artist’s work mirrors reality but subtly distorts it using humour and fiction to unsettle the making of truth and history.

Bady Dalloul (b. 1986) is a multimedia artist whose work entwines historical events, personal facts and fiction. His works are imbued with sociological and historical reflections on his heritage and issues of global migration.

Curated by Art Jameel’s Lucas Morin, the exhibition will be on view until February 22, 2026.

‘Self-portrait with a cat I don’t have’ is the second chapter of Bady Dalloul’s ‘Land of Dreams’ nomadic exhibition series, after the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo (2024), and before Lisbon’s Centro de Arte Moderna Gulbenkian (opening September 2026).

For more information head to the Jameel Arts Centre website or instagram page.

Tagged 09/09.