Kutubna Explores Everyday Moments in New Photography Exhibition

More than 40 photographs by 16 UAE-based photographers will come together in ‘Nothing Worth Mentioning’, opening at Kutubna Cultural Center in Dubai on September 5th.

Curated by Dubai-born visual artist and photographer Ola Allouz, the exhibition looks at how personal rituals, routines, brief encounters and overlooked places can accumulate meaning over time. Rather than focusing on exceptional moments, the works examine how identity, memory and human connection can emerge through ordinary details.

The exhibition's concept developed from six photography trips to Kumzar, where the shared moments around the table became more significant than the photographs themselves. Food, stories, laughter and conversation gradually shifted the focus toward the experiences surrounding photography and the memories created through them.

Among the featured works is a series by Abdallah Alastad documenting the ritual of preparing and sharing tea. Istakanahs, bayalahs, light reflected on the glass, hand movements and the spoon signalling the first sip become details through which habit, hospitality and companionship are explored.

Fatima Al Amiri similarly examines human connection through Fwalah, the Emirati tradition of sharing fruit and food with guests. Her photographs focus on hands gathered around a shared plate, using the gesture to convey generosity and kindness.

Several works draw on recurring routines. Abdulla Al Ghurair documents his weekly Friday visits with his late grandmother Afra, whose love of gardening and flowers is recalled through the roses he brought her. Mohamed Al Alawi follows the relationship between his seven-year-old son Noah and Leo, the family's cat, across six years.

Elsewhere, Fatima Albudoor photographs a woman quietly looking toward the horizon during Dubai's golden hour, exploring her relationship with the sea. Abdulla Alblooshi documents a man's weekly routine of feeding, grooming and playing with stray cats near an old mosque on the Ras Al Khaimah Corniche, while Aisha Esmaeilzadeh focuses on a worker resting amid the activity surrounding Dubai Creek.

Judite Serafim's contribution depicts an empty chair holding folded sajjadas beneath one of Sharjah's oldest mosques, suggesting traces of presence and spiritual activity through what has been left behind.

The participating photographers are Abdallah Alastad, Abdulla Al Ghurair, Abdulla Alblooshi, Aisha Esmaeilzadeh, Akhilesh Nair, April Ann Vocal, Fatima Al Amiri, Fatima Albudoor, Judite Serafim, Latifa Almazrouei, Maitha Alqassmi, Maria Khodzhamberdieva, Mohamed Al Alawi, Ola Allouz, Preschelle Ann Bigueras and Sara Al Shamsi.

Emirati writer Ayesha Alyassi will also take part through her interactive Therapy Mail Club, inviting visitors to write, send and share messages responding to the exhibition’s themes.

Allouz’s wider photographic practice similarly centres on everyday life, culture and human connection. Her ongoing project Archiving the Now documents contemporary cultural life in the UAE and has resulted in two photography books.

‘Nothing Worth Mentioning’ will open at 6 PM on September 5th at Kutubna Cultural Center in Madina Avenues, Nadd Al Hamar, and will remain on view until September 27th.