Tabari Artspace in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is set to host a solo exhibition by Egyptian artist Mohamed Monaiseer, titled “85 Seconds To Midnight.” The showcase, which runs from September 11 through October 1, invites viewers to examine history through cycles of repetition and the fluid, often unstable, line between reality and imagination. Monaiseer’s work focuses on the recurring nature of war, imperial power, and occupation, questioning how these forces persist across generations and borders while maintaining familiar structures of dominance.
The exhibition was developed during the artist’s residency at Can Serrat, a historic Catalan farmhouse in El Bruc, Montserrat, located 45 kilometers from Barcelona. The residency, which has supported artistic and literary projects since 1989, accommodates up to 35 residents and facilitates multidisciplinary collaboration. During his time there, Monaiseer witnessed the onset of the war in Gaza, an event that deeply influenced his exploration of how violence repeats over time and how subjective narratives shape our understanding of conflict. The exhibition title references the Doomsday Clock, symbolizing humanity’s proximity to catastrophe and the urgency of the current global state of emergency.
Featuring approximately 40 works, the collection includes paintings, drawings, sculptures, textile pieces, and a video installation. Monaiseer incorporates recurring motifs drawn from folklore, literature, and contemporary media. His depictions of armored figures—sometimes dancing or mounted on toy horses—invoke the absurdity of Don Quixote to critique the romanticization of war. By utilizing dark humor, the artist examines the performance of power and the fantasies used to justify conflict. Other works feature pixelated figures and grids that reflect the digital mediation of modern warfare, highlighting how misinformation and compressed images distort our perception of reality from a distance.
The artist also integrates symbolic elements, such as playing card patterns, to suggest that for some, conflict is treated as a game or a gamble. Geometric grids in his canvases are informed by oral narratives, including conversations with fellow residents at Can Serrat regarding the formations of aircraft and their association with chemical warfare. These contemporary codes are juxtaposed with ancient storytelling, such as the legend of a drummer whose sound deceived an approaching army, and the recurring image of sheep as a metaphor for herd mentality and the ease with which individuals are manipulated into collective positions.
Born in Egypt in 1989, Mohamed Monaiseer holds a BA in Educational Art and an MFA from Cairo University. His artistic practice is characterized by obsessive repetition and a style reminiscent of heritage crafts, often dealing with metaphysical concepts, alchemy, and oral histories. His work has been described as a critical exploration of how the aesthetics of domination can be disguised within everyday rituals and seemingly innocuous objects. He has participated in numerous international exhibitions, including Art Basel Qatar in 2026 and Tefaf Maastricht in 2023.
Monaiseer’s previous solo exhibitions include “Limen: Thresholds” at Tabari Artspace (2025), “I, Pet Lion” at Gypsum Gallery (2024), “Adrift in the Labyrinth of a Parallel Mind” at Athr Gallery (2019), and “Taxidermy Dreams” at Alserkal Avenue (2019). His current host venue, Can Serrat, continues to foster creative growth through its co-living programs and the “Remota” online project, which provides advising and collective creation workshops. The residency is supported by the Generalitat de Catalunya and is a member of the Xarxaprod network of artistic production centers. The report also notes that it has welcomed artistic and literary projects since 1989, one of the oldest international residency programmes in Catalonia. The report also notes that which allows for fruitful exchanges, the house can accommodate up to 35 people from a diverse range of countries and disciplines. The report also notes that as a countdown to judgment day and through the idea of cycles, time is mobilised in various ways in this series. The report also notes that he is also interested in the forms through which these searing realities reach us. The report also notes that news reports, digital images, literature, oral histories, conspiracy theories, folklore and myth each offer their own versions of events, blurring the boundaries between what is imagined, perceived and believed.
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