Farah Al Qasimi's Toy World exhibition at The Third Line explores Gulf futurism through black-and-white photography

Farah Al Qasimi's exhibition Toy World at The Third Line in Dubai from February 27 to April 19 marks her first use of black-and-white photographs, departing from her signature vibrant color palette. The installation features linear sequences of undated images resembling hieroglyphic texts, including a burning palm frond, a figure with a horse, and a shop window titled Terrorist Hunting Permit. Al Qasimi notes that monochrome imagery automatically historicizes content, evident in works referencing Wilfred Thesiger's 1959 book Arabian Sands and ancient coins. Her mixed-media collage Wingspan (2024) incorporates portraits of guides from Rub' al-Khali and plaster fragments from Sir Bani Yas, site of seventh-century Christian remains in the UAE. The show includes color photographs like Sand Dune (2023) and videos of mechanical toys moving aimlessly, creating uncanny loops with sound effects. Black-and-white triptychs reference her 2023 video Um Al Dhabaab (Mother of Fog), connecting contemporary Ras Al Khaimah with a nineteenth-century anti-colonial fighter. Al Qasimi's earlier work Living Room Vape (2016) exemplified Gulf futurism through domestic Emirati spaces, while pandemic-era pieces like Woman and Snail (2022) showed muted palettes. The exhibition arranges photographs with color printouts, photocopies, and plastic flowers taped to walls at varying heights.