Resonating Tides: Women Artists Address Climate and Water at Expo City Dubai

Curated by Janet Bellotto, Resonating Tides brings together 11 female artists at the Women’s Pavilion in Expo City, Dubai, to explore water as a connector between humanity and the environment. Launched during COP28, the exhibition extends climate discussions into culture. Works include Marwah AlMugait’s video I Lived Once (2020), which mimics the Mimosa pudica plant’s defense mechanism; Ghada Khunji’s Kãf-Ha-Ya-‘Aĩn- Ṣãd (2020), a cloak with 2,200 date seeds referencing a Qur’anic chapter; and Sama Alshaibi’s Silsila (2014), depicting a female figure emerging from the sea along Ibn Battuta’s route, highlighting climate-induced displacement and hydro-political conflict. Alshaibi’s Carry Over (2019) series shows women balancing water vessels, challenging Orientalist stereotypes while addressing climate impacts on women in low-income societies. Aïda Muluneh’s Water Life (2018) photographs women in Dallol, Ethiopia. Magda Malkoun presents NFT Hope (2021–22), an animated portrait symbolizing women’s resilience. An opening talk with Malkoun, Khunji, and Stephanie Neville discussed art’s role in culture-based climate action. The exhibition runs until March 3, 2024.