ArtDayME: ‘Beghost,’ a solo show by Nika Neelova is on view at Nika Project Space.

The show consists of sculptures made of glass, clay, and fossilized shark teeth that provide an imagined glimpse into the prehistoric marine life that once existed in Buhais Geology Park and Jebel Buhais, an archeological site in he Al Madam Plain of Sharjah.

The works, emblematic of decay and transformation, are put in conversation with fossils from the collection of archaeologist Nirmal Rajah, who in 2015, led an expedition to find fossils in Tamil Nadu’s Ariyalur district.

The show presents the product of Neelova’s research trip to the UAE in 2022, examining Sharjah’s past. The works present the desert with the spirit of water, which has long vanished from the area, but has left behind fossilized remnants encoded in rocks and preserved in the geological record. The artist examines the processes by which rock erodes into sand and clay, sand combined with silica creates glass, and clay solidifies when exposed to air. Neelova’s sculptures are made of materials that undergo a continuous metamorphosis, reflecting these natural patterns and hinting at the perpetual recycling of materials on Earth.

the exhibition continues until October 5 at Nika Project Space, Dubai.

Photos courtsey of Mukhamedzyanova Liana