Louvre Abu Dhabi is currently hosting Art Here 2025, an exhibition examining the interplay of light and shadow across cultures, running until December 28, 2025. For the first time, the annual showcase includes contributions from Japan, alongside artists from the MENA region, highlighting shared aesthetic philosophies between Japanese shoji screens and Gulf mashrabiya latticework.
Curated by Sophie Mayuko Arni, the exhibition features six shortlisted works for the Richard Mille Art Prize, exploring shadow as a material, a perception tool, and a cultural expression. Highlights include:
- Hamra Abbas – Tree Studies: Inlaid lapis lazuli tiles casting shadow-like images of trees native to Pakistan and the UAE, inspired by gardens in Islamic art.
- Ryoichi Kurokawa – skadw-: An audiovisual installation using light, fog, and strobing to create immersive shadow experiences reflecting the Japanese concept of Ma, or negative space.
- Rintaro Fuse – A Sundial for the Night Without End: A terrace installation aligning gnomons with past, present, and future North Stars, reflecting temporal shifts across millennia.
- Jumairy – Echo: A circular pool-like digital installation casting shadows in response to motion, encouraging reflection on the unconscious self and inspired by the myth of Narcissus and Echo.
- Yokomae et Bouayad – The Choreography of a Cloud, Dancing Shadows: Mesh structures that move with the wind, producing ever-changing shadow patterns across day and night, blending architecture with nature.
- Ahmed Alaqra – I remember. a light: Resin-encased shadows derived from urban spaces in Sharjah and Dubai, transforming ephemeral shadows into tangible forms.
The exhibition demonstrates how shadows can inform perception, transform familiar spaces, and connect traditions across regions. According to Manuel Rabate, director of Louvre Abu Dhabi, the artworks were selected for their thematic consistency and responsiveness to the museum’s architecture, reinforcing its mission as a universal platform for dialogue between cultures.