Hatta: the painted portraits

Before the marble mosaic, Case Ma’Claim painted the portraits of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum across an inclined surface at Hatta Dam. Measuring approximately eighty by thirty metres, the mural brought the artist’s photorealistic technique into the scale and topography of the mountain setting.

Commissioned by the Government of Dubai Media Office with Brand Dubai, the work formed part of the wider Dubai Street Museum programme. SAN Projects supported its production, connecting the artist’s image with the demands of painting across a substantial sloping structure.

The two portraits could be read across the landscape, linking an image of the UAE’s founders with one of Hatta’s recognisable sites. This earlier painted commission is a separate chapter from the marble mosaic completed in 2023, which introduced another material and production process to the same location.