Oman’s contemporary art scene will have a presence in Paris this October as Stal Gallery presents French photographer Laura Bonnefous’ Souffle Aride series at Menart Fair during Paris Art Week.
The exhibition will bring Bonnefous’ interpretation of Duqm to an international audience, presenting a selection of photographs created during her time in Oman. Menart Fair, dedicated to modern and contemporary art from the Middle East and North Africa, returns for its seventh edition from October 23 to 25, 2026.
At the centre of the presentation is Souffle Aride, a body of work that emerged from Bonnefous’ residency in Oman in 2024. The residency was developed as part of the sixth edition of French Weeks in Oman, organised by the French Embassy to Oman.
During her stay, Bonnefous travelled to Duqm, where she began photographing a landscape defined by striking geological formations, vast open spaces and the subtle presence of human activity.
Rather than documenting the city in a conventional way, the photographer approached Duqm through its details. Rock surfaces, textures, colours and shifting forms become subjects in their own right, creating images that at times appear abstract.
“Exploring matter, apprehending surfaces, questioning and understanding territories through their colors, textures, and sensibilities, such are the elements that constitute the essence of my photographic work,” Bonnefous said.
“With my new project, Souffle Aride, I have chosen to explore and study a singular and captivating town in the Sultanate of Oman, the city of Duqm.” Around 20 works from the series were first exhibited at Stal Gallery in Muscat in 2024, introducing local audiences to Bonnefous’ visual interpretation of an area more commonly associated with Oman’s industrial and economic development.
The project has since continued to evolve. In 2025, Souffle Aride was published as a 136-page photobook by Éditions Odyssée, featuring more than 100 photographs.
The publication also includes a text by acclaimed Omani writer Jokha Alharthi, adding a literary response to the visual exploration of Duqm. It was produced with the support of the French Embassy in Oman and the Embassy of Oman in France.
Now, the project returns to France in exhibition form.
Among the works selected for Menart Fair are Fragile Immensité, Espace Infini and Au-delà, created in 2024 and presented as fine art prints.
Their presentation takes on particular significance within this year’s Menart Fair theme, “Where is home?”, which explores ideas surrounding place, belonging and identity.
For Stal Gallery, the exhibition also represents an opportunity to bring an Oman-based artistic project into a wider international conversation.
“Through its representation of Bonnefous, Stal Gallery continues to position itself as a mediator of international cultural exchange. In this sense, Souffle Aride is not only a photographic series, but also a record of Franco-Omani cultural diplomacy: from its development during French Weeks in Oman to its exhibition in Muscat, its publication in France, and its presentation at Menart Fair within a Middle Eastern context,” said Volodymyra Sobolevska, gallerist at Stal Gallery.
The journey of Souffle Aride reflects that exchange. What began with a French photographer travelling through Oman developed into an exhibition in Muscat, followed by a publication combining French photography with Omani writing. Its next appearance in Paris brings the project full circle while introducing another interpretation of Oman to European audiences.
Founded in 2013 by the Alserkal Group, Stal Gallery in Muscat serves as a cultural hub to promote contemporary art, support local and international artists.
Its participation in Menart Fair places the Muscat gallery alongside artists and galleries connected to the wider Middle East and North African art scene.
Yet it is Duqm that remains at the heart of the exhibition.
Through Bonnefous’ photograd phs, the coastal city emerges not simply as a place of rapid development, but as a landscape of unusual forms, quiet spaces and geological character.
As Souffle Aride travels from Muscat to Paris, the exhibition offers international audiences a less familiar portrait of Oman, seen through the textures and immense spaces of one of its most rapidly changing landscapes.
Laura Bonnefous’ Souffle Aride explores the textures, colours and vast spaces of Duqm.
2. A work from Souffle Aride captures Duqm’s distinctive geological landscape through an abstract lens.
3. Bonnefous photographed Duqm during her 2024 residency in Oman, focusing on the details of its landscape.
4. Souffle Aride brings a different visual perspective of Duqm to audiences in Paris.
5. Selected works from Souffle Aride will be presented by Stal Gallery at Menart Fair during Paris Art Week.
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