Alia Ali: Coming Summer 2026

With roots in Yemen, Bosnia, and the United States, Alia Ali’s artwork explores themes of identity, displacement, transnationalism and migration through photographs that blur the line between portraiture and abstraction. Ali intentionally sources her fabrics from around the world, weaving together a global dialogue through materials including French paper, Dutch wax prints from Nigeria, the Ivory Coast, and Senegal, and Rajasthani hand-printed cotton from India. Ali invites viewers to reflect on how fabric shapes our perceptions of ourselves, the world, and one another.

Textile has been a constant in Ali’s practice. Her strong belief that textile is significant to all of us reminds us that we are born into it, sleep in it, eat on it, define ourselves by it, shield ourselves with it, and eventually, we die in it. While it unites us, it also divides us physically and symbolically. Her work broadens into immersive installations utilizing light, pattern, and textile to move past language and invites viewers to reflect on how fabric shapes our perceptions of ourselves, the world, and one another.