Dubai, UAE – September 17, 2025, Tashkeel has reopened its Nad Al Sheba 1 Gallery with Of Liminal Threads, the debut solo exhibition of Syrian-Lebanese artist and designer Ranim AlHalaky. The show, which opened September 16, marked the culmination of AlHalaky’s year-long participation in Tashkeel’s Critical Practice Programme (CPP), a residency that since 2014 has provided UAE-based artists with mentorship, studio access, and funding to realize ambitious projects.

Guided by mentors Dr. Samir Mahmoud and architect Faysal Tabbarah, and working with collaborators in sound and film, AlHalaky developed a multilayered body of work that examines memory, migration, and material experimentation. Her grandmother Omaya’s home in Damascus once the heart of family life served as a touchstone for the exhibition. Cyanotypes, fabric stamping, sound recordings, and printed textiles drew on fragments of summer rituals, from apricot jam simmering in the kitchen to the hum of a ceiling fan.

“In Of Liminal Threads, I wanted to weave fragments of journeys both physical and emotional into a space that speaks to transition and belonging,” AlHalaky said. “The works carry traces of movement, memory, and pause, inviting viewers to step into the spaces in-between, where departure and arrival coexist.”

To extend the experience beyond the gallery, Tashkeel partnered with Gerbou Restaurant, where chefs created a dessert based on AlHalaky’s stories of making apricot jam with Omaya. Shaped like a folded blanket and printed with cyanotype-inspired impressions, the dish offered a sensory continuation of the exhibition.

The reopening also launched the Tashkeel Artist Collection, a new line of collectible crockery co-designed with exhibiting artists. AlHalaky’s inaugural edition featured a mug and plate in the show’s signature blue tones. The collection will expand with each exhibition and be available in the gallery shop and online.

Sheikha Lateefa bint Maktoum, Founder and Director of Tashkeel, called the exhibition “not just an exhibition, but the result of a year dedicated to curiosity and exploration.” She added, “Through the Critical Practice Programme, we are committed to nurturing artistic voices and expanding the ways in which audiences can connect with art.”

With Of Liminal Threads, Tashkeel’s Nad Al Sheba 1 Gallery reopened as more than a venue for viewing art it became a site for tasting, collecting, and carrying stories forward.