Abdullah Al Saadi's work ranges from painting, drawing and the creation of lengthy artists' notebooks to the collection and systematic categorisation of found objects and the invention of new alphabets. A great affinity with nature and rural life informs his practice, which explores the changing environment as well as personal and cultural history.
Read MoreAl Saadi's work has been shown in the solo exhibition Al-Toubay, Sharjah Art Foundation (2014), and his installation Camar Cande's Journey (2010-2011) was a SAF commission. His work was also presented in a number of group exhibitions, including Sharjah Biennial 13 (2017); 1980–Today: Exhibitions in the United Arab Emirates, Venice Biennale (2015); Sharjah Biennial 12 (2015); Here and Elsewhere, New Museum, New York (2014); Emirati Expressions: Realised, Manarat Al Saadiyat, Abu Dhabi (2013); Body Art and Performance in the Gulf Area: 16 Artists, New York University Abu Dhabi (2013); Sharjah Biennial 10 (2011); Venice Biennale (2011); ADACH Platform, Venice Biennale, (2009); Languages of the Desert, Kunstmuseum Bonn, Germany (2005); São Paulo Biennial (2004); Sharjah Biennial 6 (2003) and The Art of the Five from the United Arab Emirates, Ludwig Forum for International Art, Aachen, Germany (2002).
Al Saadi holds a bachelor's degree in English literature from the United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain (1993) and studied Japanese painting at Kyoto Seika University, Kyoto, Japan (1994-1996).
He was born in 1967 in Khorfakkan, United Arab Emirates, where he still lives and works.
Text courtesy Sharjah Art Foundation
