Sara Alahbabi

In this weaving, four identical lines of women wear battoulah, metallic face masks common in the Persian Gulf. The women at the center of each row look at the viewer. By examining veiling, Alahbabi and Al Ketbi highlight the limited but growing role and status of Emirati women.

This textile was made while the artists were visiting RISD through a joint program with the Salama bint Hamdan al Nahyan Foundation in Abu Dhabi. Although they usually work in photography, Alahbabi and Al Ketbi collaborated with Brooks Hagan in RISD’s Textiles Department, harnessing computerized technology to weave this black, gold, and silver length.