Painting Live in the UAE: My Experience at Fujairah Artists Street
In December 2025, I had the honor of being invited by the Fujairah Fine Arts Academy to participate in the Fujairah Artists Street Forum in the United Arab Emirates.
The event brought together artists from different parts of the world for several days dedicated to art, creativity and cultural exchange.
Unlike a traditional exhibition where visitors see only the finished artwork, this event gave people an opportunity to experience something I especially enjoy — watching art being created live.
And for me, it meant packing my paints and brushes and traveling from Serbia to the UAE to do what I love most.
Paint.
Fujairah Artists Street
Fujairah Artists Street is organized by the Fujairah Fine Arts Academy and brings art directly into a public setting through live painting, workshops, exhibitions and activities involving international artists.
The event takes place in Fujairah, with art activities held around the beach and public spaces, creating a very different atmosphere from painting alone inside a studio.
For me, one of the most exciting parts was having the opportunity to paint in front of visitors and other artists.
Two Paintings Created in the UAE
During my time in Fujairah, I worked on two large original paintings, both measuring 120 × 80 cm / 47.2 × 31.5 in.
I chose two subjects that felt perfectly connected to where I was creating them: Dubai Panorama and Arabian Camel.
Although they are very different subjects, together they became my colorful interpretation of the UAE — one representing its modern architecture and energy, and the other its nature, heritage and desert landscape.
Dubai Panorama — 120 × 80 cm / 47.2 × 31.5 in
Dubai Panorama actually began its journey before I arrived in the Emirates.
I started painting it in Serbia, but deliberately left the artwork unfinished.
I wanted the final part of the painting to be created in the country that inspired it.
So I brought the canvas with me to Fujairah and completed Dubai Panorama live during the event.
Dubai is a city that I associate with energy, ambition, diversity and possibility, and rather than painting its skyline exactly as it appears in reality, I wanted to interpret it through my own visual language.
Bold colors, strong contrasts and recognizable architecture transform the skyline into my own colorful version of Dubai.
Arabian Camel — 120 × 80 cm / 47.2 × 31.5 in
The second painting was a completely different experience.
While Dubai Panorama arrived with me from Serbia partially completed, Arabian Camel was created entirely in Fujairah.
I started with a blank canvas and painted the artwork from beginning to end while I was in the UAE.
The camel felt like a natural subject to choose.
It is deeply connected to the history and culture of the region, but I wanted to portray it through the same contemporary, colorful style that characterizes much of my work.
The result was a large, vibrant camel filled with strong orange, red and blue tones — created entirely with my feet.
Creating Art in Front of an Audience
Painting live is always very different from painting in my studio.
People can see the entire process — how a blank or unfinished canvas slowly changes, how colors are added layer by layer and how the final painting begins to emerge.
Because I paint entirely with my feet, live painting also gives visitors an opportunity to see how I actually create my work, rather than only seeing the finished result.
I loved being able to share that process with people in Fujairah.
There were artists from different backgrounds around me, visitors stopping to watch, conversations happening and art being created everywhere.
It made the entire experience about much more than simply finishing two paintings.
From Serbia to the United Arab Emirates
At the end of the event, seeing Dubai Panorama and Arabian Camel standing together was probably my favorite moment.
One painting had started its journey thousands of kilometers away in Serbia and was completed in the Emirates.
The other had been born entirely there — from a blank canvas to a finished 120 × 80 cm painting.
Together, they became a memory of my time in Fujairah and another special chapter in my journey as an artist.
I am incredibly grateful to the Fujairah Fine Arts Academy for the invitation and for giving me the opportunity to share my art and the way I create it with a new audience.
And, as always, thank you to everyone who follows and supports my journey from wherever you are in the world.
There are many more canvases — and hopefully many more countries — still ahead!
— Dejana Nežić
Girl With Wings