When the desert was an ocean

There is a lot of imagination in the work of London-based artist Nika Neelova. Her ability to reinvent the archaeological site of Jebel Buhais in the Al Madam Plain in the United Arab Emirates and bring it back to life draws creative energy from the world of fantasy. The idea for the project was born during a trip by Neelova to the Buhais Geology Park in the Summer of 2022. It is an archaeological area that rises in the middle of the desert, in a strip of land that has an ancient geological history that dates back to over 93 million years ago. Among the vast sand dunes of Arabia made up of eroded rocks or mineral grains transported by the wind, abundant marine fossils are hidden, a sign that there was once the sea in this area. Neelova's sculptures, made from a variety of materials including glass, clay and fossilized shark teeth, offer an imaginary vision of the ancient marine life that once inhabited the region. Each piece tells a story of transformation and decay, fusing notions of chemistry, alchemy and geology.