ArtDayME: The inaugural solo exhibition Everyman’s Mountain by Emirati artist and designer Omar Al Gurg is now on view at Lawrie Shabibi gallery in Dubai and will run until 12 September 2025.

The exhibition presents a compelling series of photographs captured during a six-day journey to Mount Kilimanjaro in 2021. Through Al Gurg’s attentive and empathetic lens, the works offer a layered and nuanced exploration of the mountain as a living, evolving ecosystem shaped by both natural forces and human presence.

The photographs reveal Kilimanjaro’s diverse habitats—from mist-laden forests and regenerating moorlands affected by recent fires, to the fragile ice caps near the summit. Al Gurg’s deliberate attention to subtle moments—such as filtered light through foliage, resilient new growth, and shifting clouds—offers a contemplative experience that goes beyond the physical challenge of the climb.

Everyman’s Mountain is a meditation on scale, process, and meaning. Rather than focusing on conquest, the exhibition emphasizes the act of seeing, appreciating, and bearing witness. It serves as a visual testament to resilience, vulnerability, and the quiet beauty embedded in every detail of the mountain’s landscape—inviting viewers to engage with nature through humility and stewardship.

The exhibition also marks the beginning of Al Gurg’s long-term project to document Kilimanjaro’s changing environment, with a publication currently in progress.

Photos credit: Lawrie Shabibi