Layla Juma UAE, b. 1977

Overview

Layla Juma (b. Sharjah, 1977) is a multidisciplinary artist from the Emirates. An artist as well as architectural engineer, Layla is interested in compositions of visible and felt connections. Experimenting with abstract concepts and physical forms, she explores links between elements of being. Her work is often open-ended yet balanced, where each composition presents a layer of traced links.

A member of the Emirates Fine Arts Society since the early 2000s, Layla is among the third-generation of Emirati artists and takes inspiration from prolific UAE conceptual pioneers – including Hassan Sharif and Mohammed Kazem.

In 2025, Layla Juma was part of the group exhibition Architectures of the In-Between following her solo exhibition titled Squaring the Circle in 2021 at Aisha Alabbar Gallery. She has participated in exhibitions in the UAE and internationally, including Layla Juma & Carolin Kropff, STUDIOSPACE Lange Strasse 31, Frankfurt, Germany (2023); From Barcelona to Abu Dhabi: Works from the MACBA Art Collection in dialogue with the Emirates, Manarat Al Saadiyat, Abu Dhabi (2018); Portrait of a Nation’, Me Collectors Room, Berlin, Germany (2017); There Are Too Many Walls But Not Enough Bridges, Kunst(Zeug)Haus, Rapperswil-Jona, Switzerland (2015); Emirati Expressions III: Realised, Manarat Al Saadiyat, Abu Dhabi, UAE (2014); Mind - Dubai Contemporary, DUCTAC’s Gallery of Light, Dubai, UAE (2012); Singapore Biennial (2008); and Cairo Biennial (2006).

Her works are in several collections in the UAE, including Guggenheim Abu Dhabi Collection, Abu Dhabi UAE ; ADMAF, Environment Agency, Al Dar Hotel & Hospitality, and the Ministry of Presidential Affairs in Abu Dhabi; Barjeel Art Foundation, and Sharjah Child Friendly Office in Sharjah; JP Morgan Chase Bank in Dubai; and internationally in Art Towada Center, in Aomori, Japan.

Artist CV

Works