Faisal Abdulqader is a self-taught Emirati artist who fell in love with art in his childhood and nurtured this hobby by reading art-related books, meeting with and learning from different artists across the globe as well as visiting international art museums. His career and working in the financial sector for 30 years resulted in an unwanted distance from his favorite hobby. In 2012 he decided to unleash his talent to the world after his official retirement from the Financial Sector. Faisal has participated in numerous exhibitions with Government bodies & universities throughout these years.
Faisal prefers to shed light on the more traditional side of the city through his oil paintings. He has painted scenes that evoke the Dubai he remembers from his childhood – of cooling wind towers, fishing dhows, a fisherman mending his nets, classic Emirati teapots, and carved wooden doorways.
When Abdulqader recreates images of the people from Dubai’s past, it could easily be his ancestors that he’s imagining. His family used to live in a house in the oldest part of Dubai, Al Fahidi Historical Neighborhood, where the houses made from gypsum and coral have been well-preserved and still retain the traditional features that Abdulqader loves to paint.
“I like to paint pictures that reflect our deep-rooted culture, for future generations to understand how people in Dubai used to live,” says Faisal. He is planning for his 2022 Solo Exhibition to showcase his past works and unrevealed works produced during Covid19.