Alia AlShamsi

Studied Photography with a focus on Social Documentary at Griffith University Australia and later pursued a Master’s in Photo-Image from Durham University UK, with her thesis exploring the archive and memory of the UAE. In 2005, AlShamsi was the youngest photographer featured at the Biennale di Fotografia in Brescia, Italy, exhibiting alongside renowned icons such as Julia Margaret Cameron and Cindy Sherman. Her career in photojournalism saw her cover both local and international events, and in 2012, she became an adjunct faculty member at the American University in Sharjah. In 2014, she expanded her creative practice by becoming a published author with a series of illustrated children’s books, followed by poetry.
AlShamsi is the recipient of the 2024 National Grant from the Ministry of Culture for her upcoming book project. She also served as the Cultural Programming Manager at Louvre Abu Dhabi for seven years, contributing significantly to the cultural landscape of the region and the curator of Interwoven: Art, Identity and the Gulf an exhibition bridging heritage visual language with contemporary art practice from the GCC.
Her photography has been exhibited internationally, and she has represented the UAE as an author and illustrator at prestigious international book fairs.