‘Unassigned Presence’ flip book

This flipbook emerges from a work installed on a public hoarding in Al Quoz. It draws from the in-between spaces of an industrial landscape, areas left behind by assigned functions, yet holding thriving life. In these spaces, plants grow without being planted, birds pause between movements, and people take brief breaks between shifts, sitting together and sharing tea. 

The moving blue bird traces this presence, a quiet, passing life that rests, returns, and continues. Situated in public space, the work points back to what is already present, the unnoticed life of these in-between spaces that continues, with or without the work.

Size: 7cm x 10cm x 0.8cm

About the Artist:
Ziya Ismail is an Indian artist and architect based in Dubai. Her practice begins with observation, both visual and emotional, drawing from processes that grow organically in nature and within human experience. She is interested in how forms emerge and how reactions unfold. Her work draws parallels between human life and natural systems, and through observing native plant life and ecosystems, raises questions of belonging, coexistence, and shared space.