In the heart of Dubai’s Alserkal Avenue, the Ishara Art Foundation is hosting Storm, the eleventh cycle of the internationally acclaimed Prix Pictet photography prize. Running until 13 December 2025, the exhibition presents a series of striking visual narratives that confront instability in its many forms – environmental, social, political and economic.
Storm first premiered at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and now makes its Middle Eastern debut in a city that mirrors much of the world’s rapid transformation and volatility. The works on display explore turbulence not as abstract concept but as lived reality, showing how contemporary photographers grapple with moments of crisis, change and uncertainty.
The exhibition brings together twelve photographers shortlisted for the Prix Pictet, including the winner Alfredo Jaar, whose series The End responds to the ecological decay of the Great Salt Lake. Other works range from dramatic natural landscapes to intimate portraits and urban studies, each reflecting the multifaceted effects of a world in flux. The photographers’ approaches vary widely, from documentary realism to experimental compositions, but all share a capacity to make visible the invisible consequences of instability.
Ishara Art Foundation’s setting enhances the experience. Nestled among Alserkal’s industrial warehouses, the gallery’s clean, minimal spaces allow the works to breathe while situating the visitor within Dubai’s dynamic contemporary arts scene. The contrast of stark interiors with images of environmental collapse, social unrest, or ephemeral human structures creates a dialogue between place, image and context, inviting viewers to reflect on their own relationship to the forces shaping the world.
For a Dubai audience, the exhibition carries particular resonance. The city itself is emblematic of rapid change, urban ambition and cultural hybridity, making the themes of Storm both globally relevant and locally meaningful. The photographs encourage reflection on transformation and resilience, striking a balance between confronting crises and contemplating renewal.
Storm is free to the public, open Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 7 pm, and offers an opportunity to engage with international art without leaving the city. It is an exhibition that is at once visually arresting and intellectually rigorous, a reminder of photography’s ability to illuminate the pressing issues of our age.
