How to Retrospect the Multifaceted Role of Ala Younis as Artist, Curator, Researcher, and Publisher
Ala Younis: A Pioneering Artist Bridging the Past and Future
Ala Younis stands as a globally recognized artist whose diverse practice spans curating, research, and publishing. Her latest exhibition, “Past of a Temporal Universe,” marks her first institutional survey in West Asia. Younis’s work invites audiences to uncover new insights from historical fragments subtly woven behind the scenes of geopolitical narratives.
Her approach involves an intricate storytelling method that intertwines personal and collective histories. Younis describes her process as weaving between these elements, with her recent work in a university museum context allowing for enriched layers of communication with scholars who explore similar inquiries.
Drawing on her background in architecture and visual cultures, Younis emphasizes the physical and narrative evolution of Arab regions she intimately knows. Her oeuvre, which includes archival installations, textiles, murals, mosaics, and drawings, reveals unexpected connections among political, social, urban, and popular landscapes.
The exhibition introduces four major new commissions, alongside iterations of her iconic works such as “Plan for Greater Baghdad” (2015), “Nefertiti” (2008), and “Tin Soldiers” (2010-11). These pieces highlight the progression of her conceptual and artistic explorations, from her early development in Amman’s art scene to her current inventive methodologies.
At NYU Abu Dhabi, Younis integrated her art within multiple academic frameworks. Notably, she advanced her “High Dam” project through collaboration with Masha Kirasirova, a scholar of Soviet-Arab relations. Additional works benefitted from support by NYUAD’s al Mawrid Arab Center for the Study of Art, and research forums in the Arts and Humanities.
Maya Allison, NYUAD’s Galleries Executive Director, reflects on the challenge of curating a retrospective of Younis’s multifaceted work. She expresses admiration for Younis’s hybrid artist-researcher-curator practice, which provides a kaleidoscopic lens on art exhibitions, vital for exploring new understandings of past and future narratives.
“Past of a Temporal Universe” features at the NYU Abu Dhabi Art Gallery until January 18, 2026, offering visitors a unique opportunity to engage with Younis’s ground-breaking, scholarly, and innovative body of work. For more information, visit the NYUAD Art Gallery website.