New Gallery Exhibitions Open Across Global Art Hubs Featuring Ceramics, Textiles, and Multimedia Works
Contemporary art galleries in Cape Town, Norwich, Dubai, Seattle, and Denver have opened five distinct exhibitions highlighting emerging and mid-career artists working across textiles, ceramics, painting, and sculpture. The lineup spans from South African material explorations to American biomorphic glasswork.
Chuma Adam and Siyabonga Fani Pair Up at 99 Loop Gallery in Cape Town
At 99 Loop Gallery in Cape Town, South African artists Chuma Adam and Siyabonga Fani present “Catching” through Oct. 24. Adam, born in 2001 and based in Johannesburg, exhibits monochrome paintings using acrylic on umbhaco cotton, a textile traditionally used for Xhosa ceremonial garments. Having completed her fine arts honors degree at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2024, Adam was also named a shortlist nominee for the Wits Young Artist Award across both 2022 and 2023. Her practice spans painting, printmaking, textiles, sculpture, and drawing, focusing on Blackness, identity, and visibility. Fani, born in 1981 in Gugulethu and working in Woodstock, Cape Town, contributes glossy recycled terra-cotta vessels built freehand with organic cracks and rivulets. Fani founded Siyabonga Ceramics in 2013, and his work appeared at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair, Latitudes Art Fair, and Homo Faber in Venice in 2024, ahead of his first solo show, “Ndim Lo This Is Me,” at Art Formes in Cape Town in 2025.
Matija Bobičić Brings Balkan Folklore and Sci-Fi to Moosey in Norwich
Matija Bobičić presents “The Kingdom” at Moosey in Norwich, England, through Oct. 31. The Slovenian artist, born in 1987 in Maribor, creates acrylic-on-canvas paintings fusing Balkan folklore, pop culture, and science fiction. His figures draw aesthetic inspiration from the tabletop game and fictional universe Warhammer 40,000, combining techno-futuristic elements with references to Frankenstein’s monster and cyborgs. Bobičić graduated with an art education degree from the University of Maribor in 2016 and has previously exhibited at Marvin Gardens in New York, Breach Gallery in Miami, Allouche Gallery in Los Angeles, and Alchemy Gallery in New York, alongside a solo exhibition titled “Perfect Organisms” at the Maribor Art Gallery.
Hisham Sharif Debuts in the United Arab Emirates at Ayyam Gallery in Dubai
Hisham Sharif makes his U.A.E. solo debut with “Allusive Veil” at Ayyam Gallery in Dubai through Oct. 30. Born in Bahrain in 1993, Sharif is the son of artist Abdul Rahim Sharif and draws technical inspiration from French painters Bonnard and Vuillard. The exhibition features ambiguous paintings marked by rhythmic interiors and a distinct shift toward color, moving away from the monochrome works of his past. Recognized at the Bahrain Annual Fine Arts Exhibition, Sharif secured the Al Dana Award during its 50th installment and earned a Recognition Award for Outstanding Work at the 45th iteration, while his creations remain part of the Bahrain National Museum’s permanent holdings.
Granite Calimpong Explores Coastal Dualities at Traver Gallery in Seattle
Granite Calimpong investigates his roots along the rugged California coast and his long-term home in the Pacific Northwest through “Under the Bank, Up a Narrow Valley” at Traver Gallery in Seattle through Oct. 31. Born in 1982 to California potter Conrad Calimpong, the sculptor earned a degree in interdisciplinary computing in the arts from the University of California, San Diego, and an MFA in sculpture from the University of Washington in 2019. His ceramic and glass works feature iridescent surfaces and mushroom-like protrusions caught in material flux. Calimpong has held residencies at the Pittsburgh Glass Center and North Lands Creative Glass in Scotland, and has taught workshops at Pilchuck Glass School, Penland School of Craft, and Haystack Mountain School of Crafts.
Zoe Hawk Paints Sinister Visions of Girlhood at Visions West Contemporary in Denver
Zoe Hawk explores dark feminine rituals in “Lost Girls” at Visions West Contemporary in Denver from Oct. 9 through Nov. 21. Born in 1982 in St. Louis, Hawk operates out of Columbia, Missouri, having earned her BFA in studio art from Missouri State University alongside an MFA in painting from the University of Iowa. Her candy-colored paintings depict ominous scenes of girlhood, such as doll-like children searching snowy woods or throwing rocks into a stone well, echoing the survival dynamics seen in the Showtime series Yellowjackets. Hawk has completed international residencies in Ireland, Norway, Belgium, and Qatar, and her work was featured in Zara’s Women in Art clothing collection in 2019.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Current Gallery Exhibitions
What materials does Chuma Adam use in her paintings?
Adam uses acrylic paint on umbhaco cotton, a textile traditionally utilized for Xhosa ceremonial garments in South Africa.
Where is Matija Bobičić’s exhibition located?
Bobičić’s exhibition “The Kingdom” is on view at Moosey in Norwich, England, through Oct. 31.
What award did Hisham Sharif win in Bahrain?
Sharif won the Al Dana Award at the 50th Bahrain Annual Fine Arts Exhibition.
What is Granite Calimpong’s educational background?
Calimpong earned a degree in interdisciplinary computing in the arts from the University of California, San Diego, and later an MFA in sculpture from the University of Washington in 2019.
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