Art / Mounira Al Solh
Mounira Al Solh opens Arnolfini’s 2026 exhibition programme
Opening an ambitious year of exhibition programming at Arnolfini, the gallery will present a solo collection from internationally acclaimed Lebanese artist Mounira Al Solh.
Born in Beirut in 1978, Al Solh now splits her time between her home city and Amsterdam.
As an artist, her work is imbued with cultural traditions both from the Middle East and the Netherlands, as well as many of the personal and political stories that she has collected throughout her creative life.
Portrait of Mounira Al Solh, 2025 – photo: Gert Jan van Rooij
Set to open at the end of February, A Land as Big as Her Skin is a multidisciplinary exhibition of work that features the artist’s Venice Biennale pavilion installation A Dance with her Myth (2024).
Drawing on Middle Eastern and Greek mythology, it is indicative of her enduring preoccupation with a number of themes – including “migration, trauma, inequality and gender”, told through a “deep love of craftsmanship and materials”.
The exhibition is characteristically multi-layered. “Comprising of a life-size boat skeleton, film, paintings, drawings and masks that together retell the story of Phoenician Princess Europa and king of the Greek god’s Zeus, this subversive installation will be shown alongside new works Elissa’s Room and Europa’s Bedroom, exploring the fortunes of Queen Elissa and Europa through a modern lens and building upon Al Solh’s growing interest in folklore and mythology.”
Mounira Al Solh, Silicone, Poppies, and a Couple of Invisible Deffs, 2022, oil and collage on canvas, 230 x 206 cm. Collection Bonnefanten, accquired with the support of the VriendenLoterij – photo: courtesy of the artist/Arnolfini
Looking ahead to the rest of the year, twin summer exhibitions from documentary photographer Polly Braden and sculptor, installation and performance artist Jonathan Baldock will be followed by a major survey exhibition of collected work from Joy Gregory in the autumn. Arnolfini will also be hosting the annual UWE Degree Show in June, and supporting the 2026 edition of Bristol Photo Festival in October.
All exhibitions will be accompanied by a secondary programme of events, activities, workshops, tours and talks, helping to make the gallery as inclusive and community-focused as possible.
With this in mind, throughout the year, a series of community-led exhibitions on the second floor will bring to life ongoing work from Arnolfini creatives in residence, including Diverse Artists Network and the Weston-super-Mare-based Super Culture.
Portrait of Joy Gregory. Her survey exhibition ‘Catching Flies with Honey’ will run at Arnolfini from October 17-February 7 2027 – photo: Brook Andrews
Mounira Al Solh: A Land as Big as Her Skin is at Arnolfini on February 28-May 24 (organised in collaboration with Bonnefanten (Maastricht, The Netherlands), and made possible by The Mondriaan Fund and Ammodo Art.
The exhibition is free, with donations welcome. The gallery is open Tuesday-Sunday, 11am-6pm.
More information about what’s on at Arnolfini, including all forthcoming events and exhibitions – is available at www.arnolfini.org.uk.
Main photo: Gert Jan van Rooij (Exhibition view Mounira Al Solh: A land as big as her skin, installation A Dance with her Myth, Bonnefanten, 2025)
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