Lumen 2025: Five years of light, bending through time

Every summer, Lumen returns as a quiet yet anticipated fixture in Oman’s contemporary art calendar. What began as an exploration of light as a scientific and poetic phenomenon has, over the past five years, grown into a platform celebrating abstraction, material experimentation and emerging artistic voices. Lumen 2025, organised by Matti Sirvio Art Galleria and curated by Anetta Szabo, marks a milestone edition. It is a reflective celebration of artists who have shaped the exhibition across half a decade, while continuing to expand its language through new works and perspectives.

Hosted at Al Mirani Fort from December 6 to 16, the exhibition brought together installations, sculptures, paintings and prints responding to this year’s theme, Light can be bent. Rather than approaching light as a fixed or purely physical phenomenon, Lumen 2025 invites viewers to consider how light is altered by space, memory, culture and perception, and how it reshapes the way we see.
Since its early editions, Lumen has examined light through scientific frameworks, as particle and wave, as speed and energy, while gradually embracing a more sensory and poetic approach. In 2025, the exhibition bridges these past explorations by bringing together works from previous years alongside new contributions, creating a layered narrative that reflects the evolution of both the exhibition and its artists.

The exhibition was officially opened under the auspices of Reem al Zadjali, marking the launch of this milestone edition and reinforcing the exhibition’s cultural and institutional significance within Oman’s contemporary art landscape.
The exhibition featured works by Abdulaziz al Maamari, Omar al Kiyumi, Ahmed Al al Farsi, Amna al Harrasi, Anetta Szabo, Asma al Zaabi, Cheryl Ingebrigtsen, Dana al Jouder, Haneen al Moosawi, Hatim al Seili, Humaid al Aufi, James Wagstaff, Jeanin Walter, Kawthar al Harthi, Majid al Amri, Maryam al Hosni, Matti Sirvio, Mohammed Khalifa, Nuha al Hajri, Salem Sakhi, Shahad al Wahabi, Shima Amia, Aya al Mohammed, Somarsee Chandra, Wadhah al Rashdi, and Yasser al Wardi. Together, their practices span abstraction, installation, sculpture and mixed media, reflecting the breadth of experimentation that has come to define the Lumen series.
Set within the historic architecture of Al Mirani Fort, the exhibition gains a powerful spatial dimension. Thick stone walls, narrow openings and shifting daylight become active collaborators in the experience. As sunlight moves across surfaces throughout the day, artworks appeared to transform. Shadows deepen, textures emerge and forms soften, reinforcing the exhibition’s central idea that light is never static.

Across the exhibition, abstraction functions as a shared language rather than a rigid style. Sculptural works built through repetition and stacking echo architectural rhythms, while wall based pieces explore translucency, fragility and concealment. Circular forms, layered materials and restrained palettes encourage slow looking, allowing meaning to unfold gradually rather than assert itself immediately.
Materiality remains central to Lumen’s identity. Stone, metal, paper and organic textures reference both Oman’s landscape and the passage of time embedded within the fort itself. Here, light does not dominate the work but activates it, revealing imperfections, edges and traces that might otherwise remain unseen.
The opening ceremony on December 6 added another sensory layer to the exhibition, with live cello music composed and performed by Kinan Abu Afach. The sound resonated through the fort spaces, blurring boundaries between visual art, architecture and performance, and reinforcing Lumen’s immersive, cross disciplinary approach.

Beyond its visual presence, Lumen 2025 continues its commitment to supporting emerging Omani artists alongside resident and international practitioners. By revisiting works from previous editions while introducing new voices, the exhibition functions both as archive and progression. It is a reminder that artistic practice, like light itself, evolves through accumulation, reflection and change.
In a time dominated by speed and spectacle, Lumen offers something quieter and more deliberate. It asks visitors to slow down, to observe how light bends across surfaces and ideas, and to recognise that meaning often emerges not in clarity, but in subtle shifts of perception. The exhibition will be open for guests until 19th Dec Friday.