Faisal Abdulqader

A self-taught Emirati artist with a lifelong passion for art, Faisal Abdulqader began his creative journey in childhood, steadily honing his skills over the years. While pursuing a distinguished 30-year career in the financial sector, he maintained a rich artistic practice, which he fully embraced following his official retirement in 2012. Since then, he has actively participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions with public and private institutions, embassies, universities, and cultural foundations across the UAE.

Faisal works predominantly in oil on canvas, with occasional use of watercolour and acrylic. His

paintings are deeply rooted in the culture, heritage, and collective memory of the UAE. Drawing inspiration from nature, ancestral ways of life, and oral histories, he reflects on the nation’s transformation from a historic center to a global hub.

His works often present realistic landscapes and portraits, infused with abstract and dream-like sensibilities, capturing fleeting memories of the past. Through symbolic motifs unique to the UAE, Faisal seeks to immortalize traditions, revive rarely seen sceneries, and pass fragments of cultural memory to younger generations.

Faisal Abdulqader’s notable exhibitions include his solo show Memories (2016) at the Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais Cultural Foundation and Dialogues on Canvas (2020) at the Mexican Embassy in the UAE. In 2025, he completed a significant commissioned museum collaboration in Abu Dhabi and most recently participated in Abu Dhabi Art (November 2025), further cementing his presence in the UAE’s contemporary art scene.